Dark side of the Moon
by darkstream0
Summary: A professional assassin gets transported to the world of Bleach. The SI is not mad at all. Infact he is very thankful for the entity that did that. Now he has the chance to be a god or at the very least he has the power to be a strong godlike being. Now all he has to do is wait to confront that stupid spirit inside his inner world. Too bad the spirit is uncooperative. OC Si.
1. Plan A fails So plan B

Prithviraj was a mercenary that closely worked with RAW. Sometimes they would use his skills to take out high profile targets that were too well connected but posed a threat to national security. He does not have some sappy story about how he unfortunately fell into this profession. No he chose to be a killer because he enjoys death and destruction very much. The power he felt whenever he took a life was something he became addicted to. That doesn't mean he let his victims suffer. No he always gave them quick deaths. He was a professional killer not some evil psychopath.

Unfortunately for him a mercenary is an expendable pawn in a mission. That is what happened to him right now. He was asked to kill a highly protected individual who has their own private security teams as well as government appointed security. Halfway through the mission he received a message to abort the mission. Unfortunately his exit plan hinged on the chaos he would create inside the building where his target resided. But now he had to improvise and that's where everything went wrong.

He was found out and he had to take cover as the guards began to fire. He returned fire and his aim stood true as he gained hits quickly but unfortunately for him they began to throw grenades. That was the end for him as he quickly got surrounded. But he refused to lay down his weapon and spend the rest of his life in a prison cell. He began firing into the guards and they returned fire without prejudice and that's how he died.

But after he died he never reached heaven or hell. All he saw was darkness and silence. He tried to shout or make any sound but no sound came. He couldn't even feel himself. There was no sense of time, touch, taste, sound, pain, vision or anything for that matter. He didn't know how long he was in this state maybe years or decades. At some point he saw a small ray of light. At first he thought it was his imagination but gradually that light began to expand and he felt himself being dragged through a hole and he lost consciousness.

After some time he began to hear sounds. Slowly he opened his eyes and everything was very bright. His eyes gradually adjusted to the light and he saw a dark skinned man close to his face which frightened him and he tried to say something. But the sound that came from his mouth sounded like the cry of a baby.

"Stop making faces at him Isshin. You are scaring him." a womanly voice said as a hand was placed upon his body

That's when he realized that he has become a baby. Strangely he didn't panic at this revelation and nearby there was another baby with orange hair of all things.

"He has your eyes but he has my hair colour. But I bet he will be like his father and become super strong" Isshin cooed at the baby

"So what will we name them?" Masaki asked as she kissed the head of the baby

"You name Mr. Orange hair and I will name this little guy." Isshin said as he pointed to me

"Hmm... That's alright. How about Ichigo? Kurosaki Ichigo. Do you like it?" Masaki asked smiling happily

"Hmm... Not bad. Now I name this one as Indra. Kurosaki Indra. How about that…?" Isshin asked in delight

Masaki's eyes twitched. "That sounds like the name of an evil villain." she complained

"No no. You got it wrong Masaki. It is the name of a sky god and our son will be as powerful as a god." Isshin explained sweating bullets under his wife's evil eye.

"It better be. Welcome to our family Ichigo, Indra." Masaki said as she kissed both babies on their foreheads

While this was happening the newly named Indra was watching all this in surprise. He finally understood what happened to him. Like the many stories he had read in that funny little site he is now a self inserted character and that too in Bleach as the twin brother of Kurosaki Ichigo. Most people would find such a revelation difficult to comprehend but not Indra. He was of the opinion if life gave you lemons you should make lemonades and good one at that and if possible enjoy the drink.

**XXXXXXXX**

As Indra grew up he learned that he was an un-identical twin. Thank god for that as he didn't want to become a carbon copy of his fool of a brother. I mean seriously Kurosaki Ichigo was the character he hated the most in Bleach anime. I mean this guy had so much power in his pinky little finger than the entirety of Shingami and hollows and this guy squandered it away. He never seek power and even when the villain granted him everything by putting him through some rough unwilling training slash fight the substitute shinigami refused to cut down his enemies because he is a drama queen. Then don't let him start about the women in the bleach universe. Ichigo had the cutest and sexiest girls after him and this fool couldn't even realize that. How fucked up is that.

But Indra was not like that. He was not someone who would waste his power and comforts in life to play hero. He was someone that actively seeks power. Now because of his birth he has the ultimate power to even become a god if he so wish and that was his end goal. In his last life he was so fragile, weak and powerless. But now he has a chance to become the ultimate being that can surpass the Reio and even the Quincy emperor. But first of all for that to happen he has to get out of diapers. Oh the horror!!!!

**XXXXXXXXX**

It was a new experience for Indra to be bought up by a loving family. In his previous life he grew up in an orphanage. Still he did not desire any family attachments but he had to act the part as a cute little boy. It is easy to say but it was very difficult to act as an ignorant little boy. When Ichigo and Indra were four years old Masaki birthed another set of twins named Yuzu and Karin. When this happened, Isshin and Masaki had to concentrate more on the newborns. This gave Indra the unique opportunity to meditate and draw out his power. But unfortunately for him no matter what he tried he could not feel an ounce of spiritual power within him. But he was far from discouraged. In fact Indra increased his meditations to center himself and control his emotions.

There is an advantage being a child as all the higher functions of the body will be at it's peak during childhood. As more and more Indra meditated, without even his knowing he was slowly undergoing a transformation. His mental fortitude was becoming increasingly well balanced and slowly he began to feel the reishi in the air. But that was just the start as he could not for the life of him couldn't draw out enough of the substance. But still a little of something was infinitely better than a whole of nothing.

Over the years his ability to draw out the reishi began to increase. In fact Indra began to feel the reitsu of others especially himself. He compared his energy with that of Ichigo. There he found that his power was slowly overcoming Ichigo. Ichigo had a turbulent energy around him but Indra's energy was slowly becoming a refined flow overshadowing his brother in every aspect. This did not go unnoticed by Masaki who could feel the difference in her children but she couldn't find anything suspicious as Indra took great care in his activities.

As years passed Indra began to hear the distorted voices from his mind and he knew it was the spirits trying to contact him. Seeing as he was on the correct path Indra began intensive meditations and sensing exercises with his reishi. Slowly his spiritual pressure began to settle down into his body. As the spiritual pressure began to get dominated by Indra he began to get clarity of the words of the spirits inhabiting his soul.

It was on his eighth birthday that he achieved the first step in pursuit of power. Isshin and Masaki threw a birthday party for Indra and Ichigo. While they knew Indra generally hated such public functions he never complained about it either. But this birthday party proved very useful for Indra as Ryuken Ishida visited their home. It was there Indra came in contact with the spiritual pressure of a pureblood quincy. The spirit energy was very miniscule but that was all that was needed for Indra ad he absorb it. After the party was over Indra stay awake in the night and once again tried to enter his inner world.

This time he found himself exactly where he wanted to be. The world he found himself was filled with huge skyscrapers o different colours. The sky was completely black and a curved half moon shined brightly in the night sky.

"I am very surprised you are able to come here and even hear me for that matter at this young age. You are truly a prodigy." a voice said from behind Indra.

"A Zanpakuto is said to be another part of a soul. If that was the case you would not be surprised and that leads me to believe you are not my Zanpakuto spirit." Indra said as he turned around and faced an old man in a tattered black coat.

For a long time they only looked at each other neither moving a muscle.

"Release my Zanpakuto spirit from your control." Indra ordered

"I am your Zanpakuto spirit Indra. If you listen carefully you can hear my name." the old man said

"Indeed I can hear the name. But I can also distinguish my Quincy powers from my Shinigami powers even if for the time being you have absorbed a portion of my Shinigami powers." Indra said with a pointed look at the old man

The old man sighed and closed his eyes for a small time and then opened them with determination.

"It is for your own best interest that I suppress your Shinigami powers. It will bring you only misery and ruin." the old man said

"And do you think you are capable of giving me happiness. I know who you are and what you are. You are a piece of another soul. I will not allow you to dictate my life. So I will ask one last time. Will you willingly relinquish control to my true Zanpakuto spirit?" Indra asked

"I can't do that. Your Zanpakuto is fused with a hollow. If I bring him out it will destroy this world and it will destroy you." the old man said

"He was forced to fuse with the hollow because of you. It seems I will have to resort to other means." Indra said as he concentrated and exited his inner world.

Indra found himself in his bed in the room of his house. He really wanted to punch that Quincy spirit for daring to stand in his way. It seems plan A has failed now it was time for plan B.

His failures in spiritual side of things never reflected in his physical life. In fact he was the class first in academics. Seeing as his competition was other nine year olds there was nothing to be proud of. But Isshin and Masaki were overjoyed to have such a brilliant son. Ichigo was not bad as well as some of his own intelligence seems to have rubbed of on the orange head he was still a big mama's boy. When they were four years old they joined a Karate dojo. There they met Tatsuki Arisawa and she would always defeat Ichigo whenever they have a match. If Ichigo gets defeated he would always go crying to Masaki. Indra on the other hand never allowed anyone to so much as even scratch him. So even if many children would have likely bullied Ichigo for his over reliance upon his mother the presence of Indra scared them away. But Tatsuki was someone that liked Ichigo very much so they became fast friends and she even smiled brightly whenever she saw Indra. Already he can feel there is a little hero worship in Tatsuki's eyes. For five years they were avid members of the dojo.

Life was going smoothly but finally that day came a day that Indra was preparing for. It was a rainy day and the date was June 17. Even if Ichigo could not control his powers he could see ghosts by this point of life. It was this ability that made him saw a girl near a lake. Never knowing that it was a bait Ichigo ran towards the girl thinking she was about to jump into the river. Just as Ichigo neared the lake the girl disappeared. Masaki and Indra caught up with him and she was shouting at Ichigo to stop. Just as they reached near Ichigo the hollow appeared and knocked Ichigo unconscious. Masaki quickly created a bow out of reishi on her hand.

"You are one of those cursed Quincys aren't you girl. I will enjoy devouring you and your spawns." Grand Fisher roared

Masaki began firing arrows at the hollow which mad the hollow leap back to avoid the arrows. Suddenly Masaki fell to her knees as her quincy powers began to diminish and fade. Indra understood Yhwach was already making his move for his eventual awakening by activating Auswahlen.

Grand Fisher seeing her weakened state rushed in to take her out. The hollow extended one if its tentacles to strike at Masaki but a blue reishi sword cut it down. The hollow screamed in pain as its tentacle fell on the ground twitching. Indra stood protectively in front of Masaki with a reishi blade in his right hand.

"You little dog... You dare to stand against me. I will kill you." The hollow screamed in rage and more tentacles came out of its body. All of them began to rush at Indra fast.

Indra created another reishi blade in his left hand and began cutting them down to the best of his abilities. But a nine year old human's physical strength has its limits and two tentacles pierced his chest. Masaki screamed in anguish as blood began to pool beneath her son's feet. Grand Fisher laughed cruelly at the sight and he absorbed the soul from the young upstart quincy in an instant.

Masaki cried harder as she saw the lifeless body of her eldest son fall on the ground covered in blood. Grand Fisher enjoyed the suffering and despair he caused to the quincy women. Her kind has been hunting them for generations and this was his revenge for all the troubles they caused.

"Don't cry and spend all your tears for one of your offspring when there is one more left." the hollow evilly laughed as it extended its tentacles to kill the orange haired boy who was lying unconscious. Just as his tentacle was about to pierce Ichigo, Masaki shielded her son with her own body taking the hit herself. Blood spilled from her body but she didn't mind as she was able to protect Ichigo.

"You are brave Quincy but you are also very foolish." Grand Fisher said and he was about to absorb her soul but suddenly a kido struck his tentacles burning them away. The hollow screamed in pain and he saw there was a high level shinigami near him. The hollow didn't waste time and opened a Garganta that transported him to Hueco Mundo as he didn't want to take any chances against such a superior being who is wearing a strange hat.

**XXXXXXXXX**

Urahara and Isshin were at the Kurosaki house drinking sake over a friendly chat.

"How are the children Isshin." Kisuke asked

"You know even if they are twins they are entirely different. Karin and Indra are similar in almost every way. Yuzu and Ichigo are the next similar pair in character. It is almost funny in a sense." Isshin said with a laugh

"Hmm... You wanted to say something about Indra. What is it?" Kisuke asked

"He has activated his quincy powers Kisuke." Isshin said in a serious tone

"Really… How did you find out?" Kisuke asked

"We never told him anything. He just sort of began to manipulate the reishi around him from an early age. Masaki thinks he discovered his power when he was four years old. When he became five his spirit energy settled down and became transient unlike Ichigo whose energy is all over the place." Isshin said in pride

"Seems to me your eldest son inherited more from Masaki than you..." Kisuke joked

"More than I care to admit. He is more composed and mature for his age. I mean, the little guy is so precise, observant and alert at all times even when we are having dinner." Isshin said

"Looks like the qualities of a strong Quincy." Kisuke said

"Thank god for that. It seems our fears of that hollow are unfounded. At the very least we know for sure Indra doesn't have the hollow inside him right." Isshin asked

"I don't know for sure Isshin. Even if Indra manifested his Quincy powers we don't know anything about the nature of his soul. But so long as he remains human there is nothing to worry about." Kisuke said truthfully

Isshin sat deep in thought.

"So where is Masaki?" Kisuke asked as he took a sip of the sake

"She went out to collect Ichigo and Indra from the Karate dojo." Isshin answered

Urahara concentrated and tried to sense Masaki. Soon he found three spiritual energies that he was looking for and Isshin was right as he could feel the tranquil feel of Indra's energy. But suddenly Masaki's spirit energy wavered and became so low in a heartbeat and he felt Indra's energy spike. Concentrating further he was able to feel a faint echo of a hollow.

"Isshin, Masaki and the children are in danger. There is a hollow nearby. I will go there fast. They are near the river close to the public park." Kisuke said as he rushed out of the house and disappeared in a flash step

Isshin didn't waste any moment either as he rushed out of the house. Without his powers he could not move fast so he took his car out and drove towards the park as fast as he could. When Isshin reached there he saw Urahara standing near the bloodied bodies of Masaki and Indra. Isshin screamed in anguish as he ran towards them. He saw Masaki stopped breathing jyst as he came and soon she appeared in a soul form with a chain sticking to her body.

"I am sorry Isshin. I was too late." Kisuke said in sorrow as he bowed his head

"Isshin, my powers vanished. Indra tried to protect me. That thing took our son." Masaki cried

"Don't worry Masaki. We can save him. Kisuke do something. You can restore her right." Isshin asked in hope

"We can't do anything for her Isshin. All we can do is perform is Konso. I am truly sorry." Kisuke said sadly

Kisuke took out his Zanpakuto to perform the Konso.

"Look after Yuzu, Karin and Ichigo. Find that hollow. It's name is Grand Fisher and cleanse it and then release Indra. I love you." Masaki said tearfully

"I love you too Masaki." Isshin said tearfully as Urahara pressed the handle of his Zanpakuto on her forehead. With a blinding light the soul of Masaki disappeared from the human world. At the same time they heard a scream from behind them and saw that Ichigo had regained his consciousness and saw the bloodied bodies of his mother and brother. Isshin enveloped his son in a hug.

Soon the police came along with an ambulance. They wrote off the incident as hit and run with no witnesses. Isshin took Ichigo and the twin sisters back home. After putting them to bed he and Urahara decided to visit Ryuken to understand why Masaki said she lost her powers. But when they reached the Ishida house they found out Ryuken's wife, Kanae Katagiri also died that day.

Ryuken saw Urahara and Isshin and led them to a private room.

"She was already ill. But her quincy powers were taken away and she could no longer support herself." Ryuken said

"Masaki and Indra died today Ryuken." Isshin said dejectedly

"What!! How….?" Ryuken asked horrified

"She was attacked by a hollow. Mid battle her powers suddenly disappeared. What is happening? Why did Masaki and your wife lose their powers?" Kisuke asked

Ryuken closed his eyes briefly and said, "The Quincy folklore spoke of the first Quincy as "The Sealed King": after 900 years of being sealed, he would regain his pulse; after another 90, he would regain his intellect; and after 9 more years, he would absorb the power of every "impure" Quincy to make their abilities his own with Auswählen… It has already begun. Yhwach has already begun the process of absorbing the powers of all Quincys he considers impure. In normal circumstances the impure Quincy in question will not lose their lives but my wife was already physically very weak. All that held her to this world was her Quincy powers and without it..."

Isshin stood from the chair and punched the wall.

"If only my shinigami powers were active." Isshin raged at himself

"About that... Now that Masaki is cleansed by konso your powers will start to return slowly. It won't happen quickly but over the years your spirit energy will recover." Urahara said

"Good. As soon as I regain it I will hunt down that hollow and finish it off." Isshin promised as he walked out of the room and went back to his home.

Isshin looked at the sleeping form of his remaining three children. He didn't know how he was going to manage them but he had to try his best.

**XXXXXXX**

That week Ichigo and his sisters never went to the school. The funeral of Masaki and Indra was a somber affair as heavy rain poured over Karakura town as if nature itself was mourning the loss. Among the Kurosakis Karin was the most affected as she was very close to Indra and Indra himself dotted on her an exception that he made for just her as she was his favorite.

Another person that was very sad for Indra's death was Tatsuki. She considered him her rival to one day defeat in the dojo. She also had a small crush on him as he was the only boy that was the same age as her and looked in her eyes without an ounce of hesitation. She liked how he carried himself with absolute confidence and his every move has had a purpose. This along with the mystery that he surround himself always attracted her to him and now her rival is gone because of some criminal murderer. She cried harder into her mother's body as her friend was buried alongside his mother. It was a dark day for not just the Kurosaki family but it was for many that knew them as well.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**Initially I wanted to write a Shihoin Self Insert but as I progressed with the first chapter it kind of became similar to another story ' God of Flash'. So I changed the inserted character. Again I became confused as whether or not to create an OC. Initially I thought about an Ichigo SI but I was not comfortable with that one either as I wrote the first chapter. So that was also abandoned and now I think this character somewhat resonates with my style of story. As I am a huge fan of villains I am uncomfortable with writing hero stories.**

**So here it is. Tell me your honest opinion if you have the time. Wish you all a good day to all my readers.**


	2. Evolution

**SOUL SOCIETY (Undisclosed location)**

Sosuke Aizen watched the events unfold in the human world through a screen. He had used Grand Fisher to remove Kurosaki Masaki from the life of his test subjects. He was very interested when the eldest one named Indra summoned reishi blades and attacked an experienced hollow like Grand Fisher. His surprise was not just because of Indra's ability rather it was the killing intent behind the weapon that interested him. To project such a killing intent at the age of nine was something most ordinary humans did not possess but yet his test subject did. How very interesting, he thought. Soon the fight spiraled out of hand and he watched as the soul of Indra get absorbed by a low class hollow like Grand Fisher. But he was satisfied as Masaki died.

"Ahh, captain Aizen. It seems your experiment is foiled and lost." Gin Ichimaru said with a creepy smile

"Nothing is lost forever Gin especially someone like Kurosaki Indra. I will be going to Hueco Mundo for some time. Record everything with Kurosaki Ichigo. I would like to observe him after his mother's death." Aizen said as he stood up from his seat and created a garganta directly into the home of hollows

Gin watched as the portal closing up with that same sick smile. He turned his head back to the screen and he lost his smile. He observed the kid who lost everything in a moment just because a sick bastard like Aizen was interested in the boy. He can only watch not act. Not yet at least but soon, he said to himself.

**HUECO MUNDO**

Grand Fisher broke out into an evil laugh as he escaped yet again from a shinigami. If he really wanted to evolve to a Menos he should have consumed other hollows but he found the suffering and pain he cause to the humans more pleasurable. This was why he went after human souls rather than hollows. Besides he will not have to worry about his evolution as he has been promised by lord Aizen to change him to an Arrancar if he managed to kill that human female. He was not complaining as he will be getting what he wanted and as an extra bonus he even managed to kill that arrogant kid. Seriously what did that stupid kid hoped to achieve by trying to attack him.

Suddenly his body became enveloped by a bright blue glow. A huge spiritual pressure began to fall around the Menos forest and Grand Fisher screamed as his body began to tear itself apart. A beam of blue coloured energy blasted into the sky from Grand Fisher and with it his screams died down.

A cloud of dust surrounded the immediate area. Many Gillian class hollows slowly moved towards the site in a sedate pace. A tail swished in the air and blasted away the dust cloud revealing a new hollow. The hollow had a tough white skin and a hollow hole at the centre of its chest and blue tribal markings spread across its body even on the mask. The wild spiritual pressure began to settle down slowly and a new hollow was born.

**XXXXXXX**

After Indra was devoured by Grand Fisher he entered his inner world. Unlike last time his inner world was different. Now the skyscrapers were inverted from the sky and the floor now became a giant hole.

"There is still time to stop the coming change. Are you sure this is what you want?" a white copy of him asked

"I am sure. Are you ready?" Indra asked

"I Am." the white copy said with a smile

"Then let's begin." Indra said confidently

Suddenly he felt his spiritual pressure release from its confines and he was pulled out of his inner world. The next moment he looked around he saw a forest with dying trees around it. He felt raw power surround him hardening into his skin. He inspected his hands and body and it looked similar like ichigo's first hollow transformed body only with blue markings.

He heard the growls of giant Gillians as they neared his position. One of the Gillian began to form a cero in its mouth. Indra was not going to look stupid. He brought forth his right hand and let his instincts take control as he formed a blue coloured cero. With a sonic boom his cero travelled straight up and surgically cut through the red cero of the Gillian and blew it's head off. The Gillian fell upon the ground crushing many trees. Indra didn't wait a moment as he began to devour the giant hollow. Soon other Gillians began to converge upon him. Indra stood up and roared and his spiritual pressure raised three times that of the combined energy of the gillains that surrounded him. Indra jumped powering the movement with his reiryoku and smashed his fist through the mask of a gillian making it fall. Then he fired a cero that vaporized the head of another gillian. He ran along the ground and gathered Reiryoku in his claw like hands and with a roar he dragged his claws through another gillain's body and blood spilled upon the land from the wound as it fell dead. From there it was a slaughter as he killed every single gillian he saw and quickly began to consume them increasing his energy reserves exponentially.

Indra stood silently after he finished his meal but he was still not satisfied. The hunger for more still tried to claw at his mind and he remembered his ambition to be the most powerful being. He ran into the forest in search for more pray to find. He will not rest until he evolves, he silently promised.

Upon a nearby cliff all of this was being observed by Aizen. A small smile came to his face at this interesting turn of events. His experiment to create a transcendent being has now taken a very unique path. From now on he will be closely monitoring the progress of Ichigo and Indra. After all he can now observe the fastest and best path for transcendence himself. With that thought he returned to Soul Society.

**KARAKURA TOWN**

"Tell me Kisuke, is there any way Indra can escape from that hollow." Isshin asked as he made himself comfortable in Urahara's shop

"It is hard to tell. You must realize there is no other beings that we know of that have the powers of a Quincy, Shinigami and Hollow. Frankly we are completely blind to what your eldest two children are." Kisuke frankly admitted

"But still you must have certain guesses right." Isshin asked desperately

"I have but they may not be correct." Kisuke warned

"Tell me." Isshin said

"You must understand that the boundary between a shingami and a hollow is very delicate. Now, the hollow powers are poisonous to quincy powers. So the only possible way for Ichigo and Indra can survive if the quincy and shinigami powers get combined. Since Indra is inside a hollow anything can happen. There is a small chance Indra might have escaped Grand Fisher but in turn he would have become a hollow." Kisuke explained

"So what do we do now?" Isshin asked

"There is also a possibility of his shingami and Quincy powers to be lost during his transformation as a hollow. Either way we must wait for him to resurface. After that we can purify him." Kisuke said solemnly

"My Shinigami powers are not yet returning. Why is that?" Isshin asked

"Even if your powers suppressed the hollow infecting Masaki, I believe that hollow has now infected both Ichigo and Indra. So now your shinigami power is suppressing the hollow inside Ichigo. Should Ichigo unlock his own shinigami powers you will be able to recover your powers but until then all you will be able to do is sense and see spirits." Kisuke informed

"It is better that way. Of my powers return fast maybe it will attract more hollows to our house like it did with Masaki. Anyway I should go. The children are alone at home. Goodbye Kisuke. Tell Tessai and Yoruichi I said hi." Isshin said as he walked out of the shop

After the door closed behind Isshin a black cat jumped into the room through an open window.

"Why didn't you tell him Indra will be a lost cause now that he will be under Aizen's influence." Yoruichi asked

"Isshin is not a fool. He already knows it deep down. It is better for me to lie now. He already has enough pressure on his mind." Kisuke said

"Is there any hope for Indra?" Yoruichi asked

"If he manages to escape Grand Fisher and I am pretty sure that will happen and somehow also manages to recover his memories as a human then we have a chance. In fact that is our only chance." Kisuke said as he hid his eyes under the shade of his bowl hat.

**HUECO MUNDO**

Indra walked through a rocky terrain looking for more Gillian to feed on. He had no idea how much days or months have passed as it has no meaning in this dimension. What he knew was that he had consumed exactly seventy two Gillians since he came here. He can almost feel he was at the verge of evolution. Not only that his power was now much greater than a normal Adjuchas after all he can feel the power of other such hollows in the Menos forest. Unfortunately he had yet to encounter an Adjuchas class hollow to test his strength which was the reason why he was traveling through this terrain. He was actually tracking the spirit energy of an Adjuchas but he has yet to find it. Finally he came upon a cliff and he walked to edge of it and looked below. Down below he found his target along with someone else. Without a sound he began to climb down the cliff and moved towards the clearing.

**XXXXXXX**

Nymeria Chacal was a female Adjuchas class hollow. Unfortunately for her female hollows are quickly killed off by other male hollows and only very few even survive to be an Adjuchas much less a Vasto lorde. She had even once met Tier Harribel when she was a regular hollow and was amazed by the power of the female Adjuchas. This chance meeting inspired Nymeria to evolve up to Adjuchas all by herself but by that time Tier Harribel had evolved to a Vasto Lorde and is now residing in Las Noches.

Then her goal had changed to become a Vasto Lorde but now her goals went up in smoke. She was careless as she targeted a much stronger Adjuchas than herself and paid the price as the rival Adjuchas began to crush her head to the ground. If a hollow takes a bite of flesh from another hollow one will lose the ability to evolve further. Now she was beaten down and if it bites her she can never reach Vasto Lorde. She was desperate for a way out but her strength began to leave her.

"It was foolish of you little hollow to attack me. I am the right hand of the guardian of Menos forest. Do you really think a lowly hollow like you can even compare to me. Hahahahaha..." the bird shaped hollow roared in laughter and he drew his arm back to strike her.

Suddenly out of nowhere a blue cero blasted the hollow away from her. She turned her head and saw an ordinary hollow walking towards her. Even if the hollow was not an Adjuchas it's spiritual pressure was tremendous. Suddenly the other Adjuchas roared out in challenge and rushed at the blue one. But the blue hollow ducked a punch and caught the Adjuchas tail and smashed it to the ground. Then it used it's clawed hand and pierced the head of the Adjuchas killing it on spot.

Nymeria was stunned by the speed and strength of this regular hollow. It has not even become a Menos and it was already strong enough to kill an Adjuchas like it was nothing.

"Who are you?" Nymeria asked as she stood up

But the hollow paid her no mind and began to eat the fallen Adjuchas. Halfway through its meal she saw the hollow get surrounded by a strong blue energy. A horrendous spiritual pressure fell upon her forcing her to kneel. She raised her head with some effort and watched as the hollow raised its hand and roared and for a moment she couldn't see anything. With a boom the energy blasted outwards uprooting the surrounding trees and she had to pierce her hands to the ground to hold on. Soon the colossal energy died down and what she saw took her breath away.

She knew the hollows evolved in stages. When human soul dies and become a hollow it is a regular type of hollow with blind hunger and nothing else. But then a large number of such hollows will combine together to form the first evolutionary stage of Menos called Gillian. A Gillian after formed will have to battle itself with the different minds of the hollows it is made of and the one that emerges in victory will be able to evolve into Adjuchas. The Adjuchas will have to feed continuously until the other hollow souls could no longer affect its mind and after attaining sufficient energy it will evolve into a Vasto Lorde, the final form of Menos. At least that was how normal hollows evolved.

She looked at the hollow before her once again and she still could not believe it. The hollow now had a white mask with horns and black lines stretching vertically across the eyes. The tail that it had in its initial stage has now vanished completely. A long mane of black hair bellowed behind its head in the turbulent winds. Its claw like fingers were now black in colour and black stripes now travelled away from its hollow hole at the chest to different parts of its body. The spiritual pressure from this thing was massive. She couldn't even get a full read on its energy either. This form was definitely that of a Vasto Lorde.

The hollow began to walk towards her. She watched as its crystal blue eyes watching her struggle to stand up. Suddenly the spiritual pressure that pinned her down let up and she found she could stand up but for some reason she stayed on her knees.

**XXXXXXXX**

Indra watched the jackal masked hollow stay on it's knees. He was about to kill it but since it was on it's knees and bowing it's head in submission he decided to hear it out. Maybe it can be useful, he thought

"What is your name hollow?" Indra asked coldly

"Nymeria Chacal, my lord." the hollow said

"A female hollow… That is quite rare is it not? Now what shall I do with you." Indra said as he observed her energy levels and found it to be close to an evolution

"Your power is magnificent my lord. Let me serve you master." Nymeria begged in fear

"Now why would you want to serve me?" Indra asked amused by her reauest

"Because of your power master. I have felt the power of Vasto Lorde class hollows before. Your power exceeds that by a large margin. Infact I am not able to sometimes feel your spirit energy. In this world the strong rules the weak. You are strong so let me serve you." Nymeria said as she bowed her head

Indra put his clawed finger underneath the chin of Nymeria's mask and made her look at him.

"Do you know a place where other Adjuchas gather in numbers?" Indra asked

"I know master." Nymeria answered

"Good lead me there." Indra said as he removed his hand from under her mask

"Master…" Nymeria hesitantly called

"What?" Indra asked

"What is your name master?" Nymeria asked uncertainly

"Indra. Just Indra. Let's go." Indra said

"Hai." Nymeria agreed as she stood up and she began to lead her master towards the Guardian of Menos forest and his ilk.

SOUL SOCIETY (Squad 5 barracks)

"Captain, you have a visitor." Hinamori said

"Who is it Momo." Aizen asked

"It's captain Ichimaru. Shall I bring him here." Momo asked

"Yes let him in." Aizen said as he arranged his paperwork and put them on a shelf. Even an all powerful Shinigami like him cannot escape a primordial entity like paperwork. He has to do it all by himself. One of the things he will change in the new world he will be creating.

"There has been a development with our new friend." Gin said as he entered the room and closed the door

"Oh. What happened?" Auzen asked

"Indra has evolved to become a Vasto Lorde and by the looks of it a very strong one at that." Gin said with a creepy smile

"Where is he now?" Aizen asked as he pushed his glasses up

"He is still in the Menos forest. It seems he is going after the guardian of Menos forest." Gin said with the same smile

"Hmm. Sooner or later he will be coming to the surface. It seems I must have a word with my Espada." Aizen said with a calm smile

"So you were planning to make him part of the Espada from the beginning." Gin mused out loud

"Oh no. I don't think he will be part of the Espada. No he has a more important role to play than that." Aizen said

"What role would that be captain Aizen?" Gin asked

"It completely depends on Indra. Will he disappoint me or will he surprise me. Let's wait and see." Aizen said with a smile

"Then I shall take my leave." Gin said standing up

Aizen watched as Ichimaru left his room. That calm smile on his face slipped away and he sat deep in thought. He was thinking about whether he should wait until he get the other Hogyoku from Urahara to turn Indra. Maybe it would not be needed as Indra has already achieved Vasto Lorde form less than two years. Maybe Indra will reach at a level he is capable of with a little help from him.

But before he do that he must analyze his character. Then only he can understand which approach to take with Indra, Aizen thought.


	3. Bright moon

**HUECO MUNDO**

Nymeria led her new master Indra towards the guardian of Menos forest. Frankly she was unsure why her master insisted on going after the other Adjuchas. He was already a strong Vasto Lorde, the strongest she has ever felt. But it was not her place to question her master and frankly she was afraid that he would wipe her away from existence.

From their right side a red cero came directly at Indra.

"Master on your right." Nymeria screamed in warning

Indra raised his hand and merely caught the cero in his hand crushed it and the energy dissipated quickly. A spider like Adjuchas rushed at Indra but as it came closer Indra disappeared with a sonic boom and stood behind the Adjuchas. The spider hollow fell down as it's legs were cut down and Indra's hands were covered in blood. The Adjuchas screamed in pain and despair.

"Eat it." Indra said to Nymeria

"Master, it is your kill." Nymeria weakly protested

"Yes it is and you will devour it. That's my order." Indra said with a pointed stare

Nymeria wasted no time as she began to eat the spider hollow. Soon she finished her meal keeping her hunger at bay.

"Come. I can sense a large number of Adjuchas and Gillians converging in one spot." Indra said as he walked forward his black hair bellowing out in the wind. Nymeria quickly followed behind him.

After some time they came across a clearing surrounded by trees. They saw two Adjuchas class hollows standing at the very centre.

"This is a trap master Indra. The guardian of Menos forest is known for his brilliant traps that he uses to take out hollows that threaten him." Nymeria warned her master

"I know. Stay out of this one Nymeria." Indra said as he disappeared with a sonic boom. The next thing Nymeria saw was her master's hand sticking out of the two Adjuchas at the very centre of the clearing.

As soon as that happened Indra became surrounded by a large group of Adjuchas and Gillians. The Guardian of Menos forest revealed himself and stood at the front.

"Hollows, fire your ceros." the Guardian commanded

Hundreds of ceros began to rain down upon Indra while he stood there never moving away from their trajectory. A huge explosion took place and a raging fire consumed the position of Indra. All the Adjuchas hollows laughed uproaringly as they watched the flames climbed to the sky. Suddenly a violent roar was heard and the flames became dispelled as the ground broke under the force of Indra's spiritual pressure. Indra stood at the centre without a scratch on his body and many Gillians and Adjuchas fell down under the shear presence alone.

Indra raised a finger on his right hand and he gathered a small ball of blue coloured energy. With a thought a fine sharp beam of energy exited his finger and Indra dragged his hand around him in a circle cutting down Gillians and Adjuchas alike. Many Adjuchas managed to jump over the energy beam and rushed in blindly with their roar.

Indra vanished in a Sonido and caught the face of first hollow with his claws and promptly crushed the head. Another hollow rushed in and threw a punch at Indra but a single finger stopped it and a blue beam exited out of the hollow's hand making it fall to its knees and Indra claimed it's life as he cut it down from it's hollow hole. Two Adjuchas rallied other Gillians and fired off a Cero towards Indra. This time Indra charged a cero on his horns and fired it off. The two ceros met in the middle and Indra's blue cero smashed away the other ceros and struck the hollows. A colossal explosion took place that wiped out the entire Gillians and the two Adjuchas.

The intensity of flames was so high the remaining hollows tried to flee the area altogether. But Nymeria took them out one by one by firing off several ceros in quick succession. She approached Indra cautiously and stood by his side as she watched the carnage around her.

"Go and consume the dead Adjuchas. If I will have to suffer a servant then it will be a Vasto Lorde class hollow. You will either evolve here or die by my hand." Indra gave an ultimatum

Nymeria panicked but she didn't waste any time and began consuming all the dead hollows. As she took the bite out of the eighth Adjuchas she felt her energy began to increase and with a scream she became surrounded by a storm of golden energy. Her huge size began to get decrease into a more human form. She still had the Jackal face but her body now resembled that of a women with the right curves. Her entire body was now covered by plates of bones hiding her physical form perfectly.

Indra stood by her side as she felt a tremendous power at her fingertips.

"Do not get drunk on this little scrap of power that is available now. There is still an ocean of difference between us and there are greater heights yet to be reached. Come" Indra said as he began to walk further ahead. Nymeria quickly joined behind her master as their journey continued.

They finally reached the mountains made of big stones. From there Indra jumped up into the sky and slashed his hand upon the air. A tear in space opened up and he entered the tear closely followed by Nymeria. They now stood upon a vast desert.

"Well that's a disappointment." Nymeria said as she looked around but only saw wastelands everywhere

"What did you expect Nymeria. This is Hueco Mundo, it is built to be a disappointment. Let's walk around anyway." Indra said as he walked in a random direction that he felt close to Las Noches.

"Yes master." Nymeria agreed as she followed him closely

**XXXXXXXX**

Aizen sat upon the throne in Las Noches comfortably. His plans in Soul Society was being prepared nicely now he was just waiting for the opportunity to present itself. He was merely waiting for Kurosaki Ichigo to grow a little bit more. On the other hand he was very happy with the growth of Indra.

Just as that thought crossed his mind he sensed a strong and unique spiritual pressure within his range. Aizen sat up straight and concentrated on the flickering energy of Indra. A small smile came to his face at the close proximity of Indra. He immediately used a low level arrancar to summon Ulquiorra Cifer to the throne room.

"Lord Aizen." Ulquiorra bowed in respect

"Ulquiorra I have a mission for you. Recruit these two hollows. The one with horns is called Indra and the other is Nymeria." Aizen said as holographic image of two Vasto Lorde class hollows appeared before them

"As you wish." Ulquiorra said

"Take Nnoitra with you as well. Let him test the strength of Indra and Nymeria. You must merely observe the strength of the hollows and persuade them to visit Las Noches." Aizen ordered

"As you wish lord Aizen." Ulquiorra replied and with a bow he left the throne room. Aizen relaxed into his throne and observed the image of Indra.

How will you react Indra? Will you react like a brutish savage beast or will you turn this situation to your advantage, Aizen mused in the privacy of his mind.

**XXXXXXXX**

Ulquiorra and Nnoitra travelled at high speeds towards the far side of the desert. That place had so many huge pillars that stood to the sky. In ancient times several hollows had banded together to form a kingdom there but the shinigami destroyed it. After that several hollows that survived the purge swore vengence and built Las Noches. It was to be a place from where the hollows could concentrate their power and finally destroy soul society. But unfortunately the hollows fell into infighting and the power of Las Noches degraded and the control of Hueco Mundo fell. Barragan tried to unify the hollows but by then there was no hierarchy or loyalty in hollows. That was until lord Aizen managed to unify the hollows under his power and gave them a purpose, Ulquiorra thought

"Hey Ulquiorra. What is so special about this hollow that lord Aizen wants us to recruit." Nnoitra asked

"He is a Vasto Lorde." Ulquiorra shortly replied as they used Sonido to cover large distances

"Then why the two of us. Only one Espada would have sufficed." Nnoitra asked

"He is a Vasto Lorde with a servant who is also a Vasto Lorde. If he can have a Vasto Lorde claas hollow as a servant then this hollow is very powerful. Besides I am only here to support you." Ulquiorra replied

"If that's the case, I will beat this hollow down until he decides to join us. Let's go." Nnoitra boasted as he vanished in a sonido

"What a fool." Ulquiorra murmured as he too vanished in a sonido

**XXXXXXX**

Indra felt the presence of two beings with high level spiritual pressure approaching fast towards them.

"We have company." Indra said as he stopped Nymeria from moving further

With a pop two Arrancars sonidoed before them. Indra immediately identified Ulquiorra Cifer the fourth espada and Nnoitra Gilga the fifth espada.

"Well well well. Looks like we caught ourselves two Vast Lordes Ulquiorra." Nnoitra said with a wide smile

"Caught? That is a serious claim from you, whomever you are." Indra calmly stated as he faced Nnoitra

"Nnoitra Gilga Fifth Espada in lord Aizen's army. Prepare yourself hollow." Nnoitra shouted as he threw his gigantic Zanpakuto at Indra.

Indra merely caught the Zanpakuto in one of it's curve by his palm.

"My name is Indra." Indra replied as he dragged the Zanpakuto forward dragging Nnoitra with it and with a single punch he put Nnoitra through one of the pillars. The pillar broke down upon the Arrancar but soon the large Zanpakuto cleaved a path through the debris and they saw the Arrancar with blood flowing freely from his mouth.

"Now you are a worthy foe to fight." Nnoitra screamed and he put his tongue out and a yellow cero formed at the middle of his tongue and as it stabilized the cero fired towards Indra and Nymeria destroying everything in it's path.

Indra raised his left hand and stopped the cero dead in it's tracks. Nymeria charged a cero at her finger tips which was golden yellow cloured and fired it. Her cero blew away Nnoitra's cero and consumed him in a matter of seconds. The Arrancar screamed in rage as his body was covered with burns from her Cero.

Nnoitra used sonido to appear directly behind Nymeria and swung his huge Zanpakuto upon Nymeria. For a moment Nnoitra thought he caught her as his blade neared the female hollow but Indra swung his right hand and a great force struck Nnoitra that smashed him through several pillars. The ground broke apart by the force of a single swing and the winds turned violent. Indra disappeared in a sonido and stood directly behind the flying Nnoitra and caught him by the back of his neck and promptly snashed him on the ground. The ground shattered under the force.

"Pray, Santa Teresa" Nnoitra whispered and a yellow aura formed around him creating a small shockwave. Indra jumped away from Nnoitra just in time as he swung Santa Teresa in his four arms. Nymeria stood beside Indra and fired a cero at Nnoitra. But the fifth Espada batted it away with one of his gigantic blade. Before Nnoitra could do anything else Indra fired a low powered Cero. Nnoitra raised his four blades to stop the blue cero but suddenly the power behind the cero increased and the blades shattered and consumed Nnoitra in a big explosion. As the blast died down Nnoitra was flat on the ground with two of his arms missing and his blades in pieces.

"You should take your friend away from here." Indra said as he turned to look at Ulquiorra

"He is not my friend merely my comrade." Ulquiorra said

"Whatever. Leave here arrancar, my master has shown how weak you are." Nymeria said as she stood by Indra

"I acknowledge your power is greater than mine even if I release my Zanpakuto. But tell me, do you want to end that everlasting hunger. Even if you both are Vasto Lorde, you will feel the hunger for more souls. If you become an arrancar your hunger will stop." Ulquiorra informed them

"In return what does the Shingami of Las Noches want?" Indra asked

"Lord Aizen is building an army to attack Soul Society. For taking away your hunger he expects you to fight for him against soul society. You are free of any other obligations." Ulquiorra said

"I find that hard to believe. What if this Shinigami is merely making false promises." Nymeria asked

"Lord Aizen made me an arrancar. After my transformation I have never again felt the hunger for souls. For a hollow that is one of the greatest gift that can be given. In return lord Aizen asks very little. You have great power within you Indra. So instead of wasting it on this endless sand, stand with other hollows and fight against soul society. I will be leaving to Las Noches. If you are interested follow me." Ulquiorra said as he picked up Nnoitra and placed him on his shoulder and disappeared via sonido.

"Master, what should we do?" Nymeria asked

"We have nothing else to do for now. So let's take a look at Las Noches " Indra said as he walked in the direction of Ulquiorra and Nymeria closely followed him.

**XXXXXXXX**

When Ulquiorra reached the outskirts of Las Noches, he saw Lord Aizen and the other espada assembled outside the palace.

"Hey, Ulquiorra. Did you beat up this guy? You could have invited me as well." Yammy the 10th espada asked

"I didn't beat him up. They did." Ulquiorra said as he pointed his thumb to his back as Indra and Nymeria appeared via sonido.

The Espada absently put their hands on their Zanpakuto as their instincts flared up in danger as they saw Indra and began to feel the vast well of spiritual pressure.

"Szayel, please take care of Nnoitra for the moment. He seems to be in pain." Aizen said with a serene smile

"As you wish lord Aizen." Szayel said as he took Nnoitra from Ulquiorra and left to his lab

"So you are the Shinigami that rules over the hollows from Las Noches." Indra observed

"Indeed. My name is Aizen Sosuke. Welcome to my army Kurosaki Indra." Aizen said with a smile

"I no longer go by that name. Call me Indra." Indra warned

"So I was right. You do remember your human life." Aizen observed

"I do but it no longer defines me nor does it matter. I am a hollow. Ulquiorra said that you have the ability to stop the hunger hollows feel." Indra commented

"I do know a way for that. But if I have to do something like that for you, you must be willing to give something of equal value to me." Aizen proposed

"What do you want?" Indra asked with a tilt of his head

"Your allegiance. I am assembling an army to destroy the thirteen court guard squads. If you agree to join my army and fight against soul society then in rerurn I will take away your hunger by transforming you into an arrancar." Aizen offered

"Why do you want to destroy the Shinigami?" Indra asked

"To change the world. To shatter the soul society and kill the Soul King." Aizen said with a serious look

"Those are big dreams you have Aizen." Indra commented

"They are not dreams rather they are my goals." Aizen stated

"So you want to become god. You aim to replace the Soul King with yourself and rule soul society. That is a bold ambition." Indra complimented

"Among other things, yes. So will you join me?" Aizen asked

"Before I agree I want to know something. Show me your power. Show me you have the power to pursue such an ambition." Indra challenged

"Very well." Aizen murmured as his face lost his signature smile and suddenly the surrounding area began to get crushed under the potent spiritual pressure of Aizen. One by one the espada fell to their knees all except Starrk who still stood there lazily. Indra stood unfazed by the power of Aizen boldly.

"You have great power Aizen. You have my support." Indra said as he gave a brief nod in Aizen's direction.

"Hmm, that is interesting. I thought you would like to fight me." Aizen asked as he let down his spiritual pressure

"No. I merely wanted to know whether you had strength and conviction enought to pursue your goals." Indra commented lightly as he observed the Espada who were rising to their feet

"In that case let me fulfill my end of the bargain." Aizen started as he took out a small orb that glittered in the moon light

Seeing the inquiring look Indra's eyes, Aizen explained "This is the Hogyoku. It is created from the souls of Shinigami of Soul Society. It will help you to turn into an Arrancar."

Aizen wallked forward and placed the orb near Nymeria's forehead and channeled his spirit energy into the orb. A blinding light consumed Nymeria for a time and a golden yellow energy surrounded her. Nymeria screamed as her mask and bones that covered her body began to break away. She fell to her knees stark naked and only a circlet of bone fragment was left on her forehead. Her hollow hole rested now at the centre of her palm on her left hand. A Zanoakuto wirh a golden handle lay on the ground near her in the shape of a Katana.

"Harribel please give her some clothes." Aizen ordered

Harribel gave some white coloured clothes to Nymeria and helped to dress her up covering her soft creamy skin from others.

"Your power has easily surpassed that of Nnoitra. Perhaps you can be the fifth espada." Aizen suggested to Nymeria

"No. I have a debt that I can't repay to master Indra. I would like to serve him if you will have me master." Nymeria proposed as she looked at Indra. He gave a slight nod accepting her continued servitude.

"In that case let's get this over with." Aizen commented as he pressed the Hogyoku upon Indra's forehead.

A bluish white coloured spiritual energy blasted up into the sky from Indra. Aizen had to remove his hand from the Hogyoku as the energy began to burn his hand. Aizen used flash step to put some distance away from the colossal energy that was blasting into the sky. Aizen was a little apprehensive as he lost possession of the Hogyoku. He observed as smoke arose from his right hand with which he had held the Hogyoku. He looked apprehensively at Indra who was surrounded by the energy field.

**XXXXXXXX **

Indra appeared in his inner world. This time the buildings were not inverted and was now rooted on the ground perfectly. The sky was still night but the moon was now complete and was shining brightly. Infact the moon looked more larger and well defined than ever and the moon light had lit the city brightly. The modern buildings reflected the sikver light all around presenting him with a spectacular view.

"It's beautiful isn't it." his Zanpakuto spirit commented as it stood beside him observing the bright full moon. The sporit had a broken hollow mask on one side of its face.

"Beautiful yes but powerful as well." Indra obseved

"Yes. The moon is most powerful when it is closer to the world. After all it influences the life support systems of all living beings on the planet. My power is similar. I have the power to influence the very existence of other living beings. You will understand after you forge my blade." the Zanpakuto spirit informed

"Then it is time." Indra said as he gave a nod

The Zanpakuto spirit raised his hand and one of the buildings rumbled as it fell down releasing Yhwach who represented the Quincy powers of Indra. The Quincy spirit floated down and stood opposite to Indra and the Zanpakuto.

"You have sealed your fate Indra. Yhwach will never allow you to live. If you had stayed human he would have let you off. But now that you have become a spiritual being he will eradicate you. I tried to protect you from this fate and now I have failed in my task." the Quincy spirit said sadly

"Instead of trying to protect Indra you should have empowered him. Instead you suppressed my powers. You are a fragment of Yhwach's soul even though you represent Indra's Quincy powers. The memories of Yhwach still influence in you in sone ways. You are not just acting in the interest of Indra but also for Yhwach. This is why you tried to suppress me." the Zanpakuto spirit accused

"I will not allow another soul to hold any influence in my soul. That's why I needed the Hogyoku. This is goodbye Yhwach." Indra said as ge concentrated on his desire. A purple aura surrounded Indra and its energy latched onto the Quincy spirit. The sporit began to flicker and soon disintegrated into spirit particles and began to get absorbed into the Zanpakuto spirit.

A blinding explosion took place as the process completed. As the smoke was blown away by Indra he saw the mask fragment from the Zanpakuto spirit had vanished and only the two horns remained. The eyes of the spirit now returned to normal as the darkness on them had completely vanished. The spirit was now wearing a white coat along with a white pant. A white Chokutō now rested sheathed to the spirit's hip.

"It seems your plan worked out well. Now call out my name and claim your power." the Zanpakuto shouted

"Transcend, Kagetsu(bright moon)" Indra called out and he felt himself pulled out of his inner world. He opened his eyes and saw that he was holding the released form of Kagetsu. The sword was a Daito with a silver blade that had blue coloured veins spread through it with an eerie glow. Silver flames danced along its razor sharp edge lighting up the surroundings. The cross guard was round and white in colour with blue stars shining on it's surface. The handle was covered with a blue and white cloth.

Indra looked at himself and he saw that he was wearing a white pant with a full sleeve white t-shirt and a white Jacket over it. A blue cloth was wound around his waist that held a black sheath for his blade.

"Do you understand our power now Indra." Kagetsu asked from the inner world

"Yes. I now understand. This is incredible." Indra said as he felt what the light of Kagetsu was doing

"If you wish you can eliminate Aizen and those who are loyal to him from existence. My light has already entered their bodies and inner worlds. Now that your spiritual energy has transcended they won't even feel our power affecting them." Kagetsu suggested

"No, not yet. I have too much use for Aizen. He is a stepping stone for our ascension. There are still many things we don't know about this world if we are to sit upon the throne of heavens." Indra reminded his other half

"Very well. Looks like Aizen is approaching you. When you have time enter your inner world. You must learn more about my powers if you still aim for the heavens." Kagetsu said as his voice faded away

Indra focused on his Zanpakuto and dismissed the released form returning his Zanpakuto to a Chokutō. He sheathed the Zanpakuto and opened his left arm. The Hogyoku pulsed softly in his arm before becoming docile. Indra raised his arm and gave the Hogyoku to Aizen.

"Thank you." Aizen said as he took the Hogyoku.

"No mask fragment, no hollow hole and I can't sense your spiritual pressure. You have achieved transcendence. Truly you have surpassed my expectations Indra. Come there are many things that I have to tell you." Aizen happily said as he led Indra into Las Noches. Nymeria closely trailed behind them uncertainly.

The other Espada looked at eachother confused by Aizen's behaviour but soon they left to their own rooms in the palace.


	4. Is it light or is it something else?

**KARAKURA TOWN**

Ichigo was able to see Pluses for as long as he could remember. He could see them so clearly, as a child, he could not tell the living from the dead. This resulted in him appearing to other people to be looking at deserted places and talking to himself. This caused people to say he could see ghosts and in many ways he was indeed seeing ghosts.

But the problem was he was too impulsive in his actions. He acts without thinking and stumble into a lot of problems because of this attitude. Often times his twin brother Indra had warned him about his attitude and tried to correct him but he never listened.

Ichigo knelt on the ground where his brother and mother was buried. He blamed himself for their deaths and he hated himself for surviving that day. From what the investigators said Indra died trying to protect his mother from some lunatic waving a blade and his mother died protecting him after Indra fell. His memories of that day was hazy. All he remembers was a ghostly image of a girl trying to jump into the river.

After that incident Ichigo would skip school to wander around the riverbank in search of his mother. This happened for many days until his family found out what he was doing and with their help he gradually overcame the crushing despair he felt in his heart. From then on he decided to live his life and be strong enough to protect his two sisters Karin and Yuzu.

It was not easy for his family to recover from loosing Masaki and Indra but his father's goofy persona distracted his sisters from the reality of their house and secretly he was thankful for his father as well even though he would never accept it publicly. While his father acted like an immature goofy person, Ichigo acted as the mature hard character in their house. Later on he began to use this front outside his home as well. Nowadays Ichigo had a permanent scowl plastered on his face but that doesn't mean he was a heartless cold person. No, far from it actually. He was very king to the dead souls that he alone could see and regularly brought them flowers or toys and sometimes he talks to them as well regardless if it makes him a weird person to others.

But his penchant for courting trouble never seems to leave him. His orange hair was a reason for conflict with some local thugs as they would make fun of him. During one of these fights, he received help from Yasutora Sado. Shortly after, Ichigo returned the favor when he rescued Sado from two gang members roughing him up. When the thugs later abducted Sado, Ichigo found them and knocked down their leader, Yokochini. After Sado was freed, they made a pact to protect and fight for each other.

Tatsuki and Sado where the only friends he could claim he was close to. There were some other friends as well like Keigo and Mizuiro but he was more close with the first two. His tough personality generally made other students from befriending him. But Tatsuki's friend Orihime Inoue was an exception. Ichigo saw her for the first time in his father's clinic after an accident robbed her of her brother's life. After that incident she lived nearby Tatsuki's home and she came to know about Ichigo. Since then Orihime had a crush on Ichigo but she never had the courage to say it to his face even though they were in the same class.

The Kurosaki family was coping with the tragic loss of its two members as time moved on. But Isshin knew that it was only matter of time before the spiritual world caught up with his family and he hoped to regain his powers by then so he can protect his family and let his children enjoy their life.

**HUECO MUNDO**

"I am a little surprised that you are not forcibly taking command of Hueco Mundo from me. You have the power to do so." Aizen remarked as they walked along the corridors of Las Noches.

"Is there a question somewhere." Indra asked

"Just curious why you decided to not take over the Espada." Aizen commented airily

"And do what with them. I don't have any grudge against the Shinigami. So I won't be needing an army to invade soul society. But you have ambition to do that so I am interested where this will go." Indra said as they rounded a corner

"Interesting. You don't feel shame to be working with someone weaker than you." Aizen prodded

"If I understand you well that will no longer be the case soon enough. I am eager to see how you will accomplish that." Indra commented

"Hmm, how very perspective." Aizen complimented as he pushed his glasses up

"Now it's my turn to ask questions. How is it that there is a sky over Las Noches with a sun while the rest of Hueco Mundo is covered by a night sky." Indra asked curiously

"That is possible because if Kidō." Aizen answered

"Kidō?" Indra questioned

"It is a special branch of Shinigami arts that use spells to achieve various results. There are binding spells, barriers, seals, destructive spells, healing spells and many other forbidden spells in this shinigami discipline." Aizen explained

"Hmm. They are versatile in nature. That's impressive." Indra said

"If you are intersted I can teach you to use Kidō." Aizen offered

"If you have time to spare then I will be happy to learn from you." Indra commented

"You are quite unusual you know. Any other hollow would have been offended by ny offer." Aizen put forth his opinion

"Then it is good that I am not like other hollows." Indra said

"Yes of-course. We are here. This is your chambers." Aizen said as he stood before a white door and pushed it open. The room was gigantic. The floor was paved with blue tiles and the rest of the walks were painted white. There were more than enough furniture and several separate rooms inside.

"We shall speak more in person Indra. For the time being I must return to Soul Society as I am still playing my role as a Captain. The room with the black door houses a modest library. It contains some books on the Shinigami arts like Kidō. I had a common library here in Las Noches but no other Espada seems to be interested in it other than Szayle who is the only inquisitive mind around here. But now that he has a separate one in his lab I thought it might interest you. Anyways I will see you soon." Aizen said as he disappeared on a flash step

"Master, forgive me for asking. What did the Shinigami mean by you achieving transcendence." Nymeria asked confused

"It means in simple terms I have gone beyond the state of an Arrancar and achieved a perfect balance between my Hollow and Shinigami powers." Indra answered as he sat down on a couch cross legged

"Close that door and see to it that no one disturbs me." Indra ordered

"Yes master." Nymeria obeyed as he told and sat on the floor observing him

Indra unsheathed his Zanpakuto and placed it upon his lap and concentrated. As he closed his eyes he suddenly felt a change and he opened his eyes in his inner world.

"You have a strong connection to your soul which is good. It makes our syncing more easy and for you to understand my powers. Still there is a lot more to our power you should learn." Kagetsu said as he floated down to the top of a building

"That is why I am here." Indra said as he drew his sword

"Good. Then I will explain how my power works. You already know my light has a special ability that can destroy any physical forms but do you know how that is possible?" Kagetsu asked as he moved closer

"It is not light that is emitting from the sword is it. It is something else that you are camouflaging as light." Indra guessed

"You are correct. What I am emitting is essentially anti-matter as small packets of energy in it's most divisible form. It can penetrate even into the inner world of a Shinigami and destroy them from within. All it needs is someone to be exposed to my light at-least once in their life and with a thought you can destroy them at any time even after years have passed. But the anti-matter can only be activated in my released state." Kagetsu explained

"That is a useful technique." Indra commented as he silently released the Zanpakuto and the blue veins spread across his sword and silver flames danced at its edge

"The name of this technique is **Busshitsu yōkai** (matter dissolution). Now use it upon that building. Let's see whether you can get it the first time." Kagetsu challenged as he pointed to a building in the inner world

Indra placed the Zanpakuto horizontally and with a thought the sword pulsed briefly emitting a flare of light. He concentrated upon his spirit energy and he could feel the anti-matter that was now inside the building.

"**Busshitsu yōkai**" Indra called out the technique and the building became consumed in a bright white explosion that began to consume the surrounding buildings as well. Soon the explosion died down and there was nothing left but a huge crater where the building once stood. Suddenly buildings began to regenerate at a speed that baffled Indra.

"The anti-matter cannot cause permanent damage to us. We are the only one immune from this power. Anything else will cease to exist in the universe if you use this technique." Kagetsu informed him as he observed the newly created buildings

"You are strong Kagetsu. I am impressed." Indra complimented

"There are other techniques as well using my light. But that can wait as you need to learn another technique that is not connected to my light. I think you understand which one I am taking about." Kagetsu said

"Yes I understand. Let's do this." Indra said as he raised the sword and began gathering spirit energy into the blade. Kagetsu mirrored his action and they brought down their sword at the same time shouting **Getsuga Tenshō. **

Two dark blue wave of destructive energies met and began fighting for dominance. Finally the energy exploded outwards blowing away debris everywhere. The smoke cleared and Kagetsu was sporting a smile on his face.

"Perfect these two techniques and return here. Then I will teach you about the other techniques as well." Kagetsu promised

Indra nodded and with a thought he pulled himself out to the real world. He opened his eyes to see Nymeria sitting before him with with a curious look on her face.

"We rest for a few hours. After that we will train with our new powers. Until then do what you like.," Indra said to Nymeria

He stood up from his seated position and decided to explore the books Aizen mentioned.

**SOUL SOCIETY (secret location)**

"One more piece has fallen into our hands. As of now my Espada is complete." Aizen said to his co-conspirators

"Well well Captain Aizen. It seems you have finally completed your little plan for Hueco Mundo. Now all that is left is to take the Hogyoku from Urahara-san." Gin smiled widely

"Don't be so sure to celebrate yet Gin. There are still a great number of threats we have to be cautious about." Kaname Tosen warned

"Kaname is right. We are yet to start the main event but soon we will change the world." Aizen promised

"So do you want me to look into the schedule of squad 13, lord Aizen." Kaname asked

"Not yet but monitor Kuchiki Byakuya. I don't want him to unexpectedly intervene in our plans." Aizen ordered

"Don't worry Aizen sama. I will be directing some time intensive works to the sixth division that will engage him for the time being." Kaname assured them

"Good. I will also have to take some time away from the soul society for some time. It seems Indra wishes to learn more about Kido and I am curious about the effects his spirit energy will have on the spells." Aizen said

"Is that really wise Aizen sama. You will be empowering a hollow and he could turn on you if the opportunity arise." Gin warned with a wide smile

"That's why I have kyoka sugetsu with me Gin. Even an ascended being is not immune to my complete hypnosis afterall. You both concentrate on Soul Society and Gin, it would be better if you subtly provoke captain Hitsugaya. We have less than two years so be very thorough." Aizen ordered

"Gladly Captain Aizen." Gin said as they returned to their squad barracks

**ROYAL PALACE**

A being stirred awake inside a crystal glass with some effort. The eyes of the being are very unusual, consisting of four black circles which can change alignment at any time. The being does not appear to have any arms or legs beyond short stumps. This deforned being was the Soul King that controlled the flow of souls into and out of Soul Society and keep the flow stable. Without the Soul King, the balance is lost and everything that is linked to Soul Society or made in it, as well as the Dangai, Hueco Mundo and the Human World will fall apart.

But one of the main power of Soul king Precognition. It was this power that had warned him of the birth of an ascended being in the world. Interestingly the Soul king was the first ascended being in the world and every other being like Yhwach was born from his imprint of power which was the reason he had placed himself behind powerful barriers. His unique energy accidently came in contact with a soul and that soul later became Yhwach.

Yhwach was not the second ascended being but only the third. The second ascendant was the reason he had lost his limbs. But that was before the formation of Shinigami at a time when the world was in chaos. Compared to that Yhwach was a small fly on the wall. The only reason the Soul king never directly intervened in the first Quincy war was because of the injuries he sustained from that devil in Hell dimension. Fortunately the newly formed thirteen court squads under the leadership of head Captain Yamamoto managed to seal the first Quincy away.

In a sense Yhwach was his son and now another seems to take birth in Hueco Mundo. It seems all the major dimensions like Soul Society, Hell, Human world and now Hueco Mundo have one ascended being that draws power from it thereby equalising the dimensions.

Has this been the play of nature all along, the soul king wondered. All these millennia he had blamed his own carelessness for the birth of all these super powered beings but this time he was sure his energy had not escaped the containment field and yet a strong being was born. He needs to think about this more in detail but he dearly hoped this new power did not have any ideas for world domination as there was already enough of those lunatics to go around in every corner of the world.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**First of all I would like to thank 'Poharan' for pointing out the story "White". Never knew such a story was there in the first place and I am reading it right now and I have to say that is the best bleach fic I have ever read thus far. Too bad the author has stopped updating further.**

**Anyway a small part of Kagetsu's power is explained here. Hope you guys liked that as the power over Antimatter is essential for his special power I have in mind. I mean Yhwach has reishi manipulation and the power to imprint his soul on others along with other variety if powers. The soul king has spatial manipulation powers I guess as he created a separate dimension for his home and also the power to regulate souls. Then there is Ichigo who can read a person's heart in midst of battle through his zanpakuto. The Hogyoku have the power to manifest a person's desires. So Indra must also have a set of special powers and I have some ideas but your opinions are also welcomed and appreciated.**


	5. The flames of creation

**HUECO MUNDO (after a week)**

Nymeria was running for her life through the desert of Hueco Mundo. She has been running for some time but her pursuer was very skilled in finding her position and attack. Most of the times she managed to escape the attacks but after a number of attempts her pursuer seems to have developed speed of his attacks. The proof of that was the burn marks on her hands. She saw several large boulders on her way and she decided to take some rest behind one of the boulder. She regulated her breath as she slowly relaxed into the rough surface of the boulder and slowly her eyes were closing but it opened quickly enough as she heard a voice.

"Hadou 32: Ōkasen"

A yellow arc of energy struck the boulder she was hiding and blasted her away from the place. Just as she landed on the sand she used sonido to avoid another attack.

"Hadou 33: Sōkatsui"

A wave of blue flames crashed into the spot she was before and the sand turned to glass from the intense heat of the blue coloured flames. She could feel the heat on her body even though she was far away from it and she disappeared again in a sonido as she heard another spell being cast.

"Hadou 54: Abolishing Flames (Haien)"

A blast of purple spiritual energy crashed near her. The sonido saved from being consumed in the blast but the power behind it blew her away. Wild uncontrollable torrent of winds started blowing everywhere carrying sand and smoke obstructing Nymeria's vision.

She landed on her back and she rolled on the sand to arrest the momentum. She was bleeding lightly from her right arm as her burn marks refused to heal even though she had instant regeneration. Suddenly she had to turn her head as a blue bolt of lightning passed very close to her head. She began to run away with a series of sonido until finally she crashed into someone else.

"What is going on here? You are that new arrancar are you not? Who is attacking you?" Tier Harribel asked as she helped Nymeria to her feet

Nymeria was struck speechless by her old idol standing close to her. She was about to answer when she heard a voice behind her.

"Bakudou 9: Strike (Geki)"

A red light engulfed her completely paralyzed Nymeria.

"Hadou 4: White Lightning (Byakurai)"

This time Harribel pushed Nymeria down and used her sword to block the thin concentrated beam of lightning. The energy from the attack was powerful as it pushed Harribel back a few feet. But soon the energy flow stopped and she looked at the smoke as a figure stepped out of it. She saw the arrancar that was recently turned who by the looks of it have no mask fragments or the hollow hole anywhere in his body.

"That was pathetic Nymeria. I told you never to hesitate or stop amidst battle. Instead you froze upon encountering an unexpected distraction." Indra commented as he walked out of the smoke with a stern expression.

"I am sorry master Indra." Nymeria stood up as the paralysis disappeared

"Are you calling Harribel sama a distraction you piece of low life." Apacci screamed

"Yeah. How dare you talk like that of Harribel sama." Mila rose looked enraged

"You are not even an Espada. You don't have any right to even speak about her." Sung-Sun said

"That is enough for today. Return to our quarters, Nymeria." Indra ordered

"She is going nowhere. I don't care who or what you are to lord Aizen but I will not allow you to use a female hollow for your sick amusement." Harribel took out her Zanpakuto slowly

"Mind your own matters Harribel san." with that Indra turned around to walk away

The three, Fracción of Harribel rushed at Indra who was walking away. For a moment Harribel blinked and then all she saw was a spray of blood. Her Fracción fell over on the ground kicking up a dust cloud. She saw Indra walking unbothered with a bloodied sword in his hand. Harribel became enraged and rushed at Indra.

"No. Don't." Nymeria screamed in terror

"Destroy, Tiburón." Harribel activated her resurrección and slashed her sword at Indra's unprotected back or at least that was her plan. Her sword was stopped dead on its tracks. Her eyes widened in disbelief as Indra stopped her sword with his palm. She looked at his cold blue eyes and then everything went blank.

Nymeria watched as her idol get cut down with a single swing from Indra. Her master raised his sword and was about to stab Harribel's forehead but she quickly kneeled before him.

"Please lord Indra. Spare her life. She saved my life once like you did. I beg you, please spare her." Nymeria begged

Indra looked at the kneeling Nymeria and decided to remove his sword and sheath it. He bend down and picked up Harribel on his shoulders and turned in the direction of Las Noches.

"Take those three as well. We are going to our quarters." Indra ordered

Nymeria rushed to obey his order happily as she somehow carried the three companions of Harribel and left the desert with Indra.

**XXXXXXX**

Harribel opened her eyes and she saw white walls around her. She felt the around her with her hands and she realized she was in a bed. She slowly sat up and she saw her abdomen was covered in thick bandages. She tried to remember what happened and realized she must have been cut down by Indra. She was about to step out of the bed but a voice stoped her.

"You would heal faster if you don't move. Even with your instant regeneration your wounds are slow in healing." Indra commented from her side

She turned her head to her left and saw Indra sitting in a chair reading a book.

"You… How did I get here? Where is this? Where are my fraccion?" Harribel asked

"I carried you. This is my room. They are next room healing same as you. Any more questions… If not take rest you will need it." Indra said as he closed the book and placed it among a shelf full of books.

Harribel fell back into the bed and remained silent for a while.

"Why didn't you kill us." Hallibel asked

"You can thank Nymeria for that. She will be happy to know that you woke up." Indra said as he stood up to leave

"Why did you attack her like that. Do you consider yourself superior to women." Harribel asked heatedly

Indra stopped and stared at her with such intensity that made Harribel flinch lightly.

"You and your fraccion are the only arrancars that train your powers each day. Why do you think the other espada don't do that?" Indra asked

"I don't know." Harribel said confused

"Instinct… The same instinct that helped us survive as hollows guides our actions. Our instincts never allows us to trust eachother because of the innate desire for survival. The fear of letting a potential enemy learn about our powers and weaknesses are the reason arrancars still depend on our base instincts. But now we are more than hollows and we need strategy, critical thinking and knowledge to fight against the shinigami of soul society. Instinct alone will not help us. I was training Nymeria to use her head instead of her instincts and that require her to face life and death situations." Indra explained

"I see." Harribel commented

"It is imperative that we train our intellect and reduce our dependency on instinct. Instinct has served us well to survive Hueco Mundo but it will not help us to survive Shinigami. The enemies we are about to face are strong and smart. We need to be more strong and smart if we are to survive the coming conflict. Also, don't ever raise your sword against me because that will be your last moments in this world." Indra said as he exited the room. Harribel closed ger eyes in deep thought and slowly she drifted off to sleep.

The next time she opened her eyes she saw Nymeria nearby.

"You are awake. Master Indra said you should be healed properly by now lady Harribel." Nymeria enthusiastically said

"My fraccion... How are they?" Harribel asked

"They are alright. Master Indra didn't use much power against them." Nymeria helped Harribel out of the bed

"If you want I can speak to Indra to release you from his service. You can join us. He wouldn't mind that." Harribel offered

"No. Master Indra is strict but only on certain matters. Otherwise I have complete freedom. Besides, I owe him a debt that I cannot repay easily. But thank you for the offer lady Harribel." Nymeria guided her out of the room into a much larger room. There she found her Fraccion sitting on a couch huddled together as they stared daggers at Indra who was too engrossed in a book in his hand sitting opposite to them in a chair.

"Lady Harribel…Are you alright?" they asked together

"I am fine. How are you three?" Harribel asked

"We are fine now that you are here. Let's get out of here as this guy gives me the creeps." Apacci complained

"Thank you for healing them." Harribel bowed to Indra

"Just don't interfere in my matters and we will get along just fine." Indra commented as he looked up from his book to look at the third Espada.

"Very well… Come Apacci, Mila rose, sung sun. We are going." Harribel said as she walked out of the room to the hallway and her Fraccion followed her obediently.

Nymeria closed the door after they were gone.

"See. They were nice and you managed to forge a cordial relationship with her. I told you she would be a reasonable person." Nymeria smugly said as she turned to face Indra

Indra pointed a finger at Nymeria "Hadou 1: Sho"

The force behind the spell blew her away to a shelf full of cloths. The entire shelf collapsed on her head.

"You are still not aware of your surroundings. Train harder rather than give me sage advices. Also fix that shelf." Indra said as he stood up from his chair and went back to the library. Nymeria groaned as she struggled to get out of the mess she found herself in.

**HUECO MUNDO (after two months)**

Indra sat down on top of Las Noches beyond the fake sky that Aizen created. He looked at the half crescent moon that bathed the dimension of hollows in a dull moonlight. He adopted a meditative stance and placed his Zanpakuto on his lap horizontally. Slowly he drifted off and he found himself in his inner world.

"Getsuga Tensho" Indra heard a voice behind him shout

"Bakudou 81: splitting void (Danku)" Indra casted the kido and a transparent energy barrier formed that held back the attack from his Zanpakuto spirit. The energy slowly dissipated into nothing and the barrier fell apart breaking away into spirit particles.

"Not bad. Your growth rate is impressive. I like your single minded focus on things that are relevant for our future. It will be useful for your fast growth to catch upon our more experienced enemies." Kagetsu said as he leisurely walked closer to Indra

"Teach me more about your powers." Indra said

"Yes. I think you should learn about this power. You may call it the ability to preserve or copy." Kagetsu said

"Preserve what?" Indra asked tilting his head

"You already know Yhwach had the power to imprint a portion of his soul into others and can call it back whenever he desires right. You have somewhat a similar power. You must understand that you are a combination of Hollow, Shinigami and Quincy. The Spirit King has the powers of a Quincy and a shinigami with ascended spirit energy. Yhwach is a pure quincy but with an ascended spirit energy." Kagetsu explained

"I already knew that." Indra said

"I don't think you understand what you are yet. The soul king is an old being who was in a world that was very different than us. The old world was different as it had no hollows. The quincys were already existing during that time even before Yhwach was born. Then something happened and the Reio split the paradise apart and suddenly hollows were everywhere. This was the reason Yhwach went to war against the Spirit King to bring back the paradise where there is no death and hence no hollows." Kagetsu explained

"How do you know all of this?" Indra asked trying to process all the implications of this revelation

"The memories of Yhwach are with me as I absorbed his soul with the aid of Hogyoku. Even he don't know why the Reio split the paradise but Yhwach was sure that he would be able to return the world to the paradise it was before. Anyways the point is you have the power of a hollow inside you and that means your ability to transcend is far greater than the soul king and Yhwach. You are in short the perfect combination of both worlds. This is why you have the unique power over souls and reality itself." Kagetsu said as he stabbed his sword upon the building they were standing which made it completely transparent.

Indra looked completely lost and confused as he saw the building was filled with people he had ever interacted in some part of his life. There was Aizen, the Espada, the Kurosaki family, Tatsuki and her mother, Urahara, Youruichi as the black cat and so many more. They were all frozen inside separate rooms in the huge building.

"What is this place? Why are they all here?" Indra asked as he observed the many people he knew

"Your inner world is a close copy of the old paradise. Here nothing is wasted and everything is preserved. Anyone that you see through your eyes will be preserved here as a copy. Their souls will never die and preserved for all times. All their abilities and power can be used by you if you so wish. You can even summon the copy outside your mindscape if in the real world a person you know dies and replace with the copy. The technique's name is **Shikyo (divine mirror)**. Call out the phrase and you can either use the power of a person you envision or you can summon the person outside in the real world." Kagetsu said

Indra concentrated upon Yoruichi who he must have seen when he was baby and activated the technique after he released his Zanpakuto silently. Soon his mind was flooded by the knowledge of the technique he was looking for. Indra opened his eyes and compressed his spirit energy instinctually.

"Flash Cry (Shunko)." Indra shouted as a silver aura surrounded his body empowering him like never before. With a flick of his foot he appeared before a building and punched with his right hand. The force behind the blow shattered the building and all the buildings that were behind it in a straight line. Indra appeared before Kagetsu in a flash step.

"This is incredible Kagetsu. With this power we will be invincible." Indra shouted happily with a gleam in his eyes

"Don't be so happy. You might be able to activate their abilities on the first try. The question is how long can you hold it?" Kagetsu asked

Just then the Flash Cry fizzled out despite the effort Indra put forth to maintain it for a little bit longer.

"You may be able to understand the mechanics behind each and every technique but you will have to train with it if you have to use it in battle for long period of time with ease. Still it gives you a huge advantage over your enemies. All you need to do is look them in the eyes. Even a very brief period of eye contact is needed for this technique." Kagetsu advised

"I see. This is very useful and looks like I will have to step up my training." Indra said with determination

"Then I will add one more technique for you to train. Watch closely" Kagetsu said as he swiped the sword in the air unleashing a torrent of silver flames directly at Indra. He immediately pulled back and escaped from the flames using Sonido and appeared on top of the next building. Kagetsu directed the flames over that building and Indra jumped into the air escaping the flames narrowly. But he watched with wide eyes as the silver flames broke down the building into spirit particles.

Kagetsu disappeared in a sonido and appeared behind Indra and released the flames again.

"Bakudo 81: Splitting Void (Danku)" Indra casted the kido spell

The barrier came alive separating Indra from the flames but after a time the barrier fell apart into spirit particles. Indra raised his sword and slashed in the air shouting "Getsuga Tensho". A gigantic dark blue wave of spirit energy crashed into the flames keeping it at bay but the energy was being converted into spirit particles so he used sonido to appear behind Kagetsu and struck with his sword. Kagetsu blocked his sword and they were in a dead lock. Indra placed his left hand behind his sword and whispered "Getsuga Tensho". This time the dark blue energy was huge and Kagetsu lost his smile as he became consumed by the huge wave of energy.

Indra watched as his attack blew away buildings and the flames as it consumed everything in its path. Suddenly he heard a voice from inside the energy dome shouting "Sozo no hono (flame of creation)".

A gigantic amount of silver white flame spilled out of the energy dome converting the energy into spirit particles. Inside that fire storm Indra saw his Zanpakuto spirit bathed in the silver flames.

"Now do you understand Indra. The flame of creation has the ability to break down anything it comes into contact to its base form within seconds. This is the first flame that existed in the old world. This is the flame that gave birth to the Quincy. Master this flame and you will be able to master creation itself. This is a flame worthy of a true god. Now focus and pull out the flame from within you. Imagine yourself as the flame of creation and pull." Kagetsu advised

Indra focused and did as Kagetsu advised. He opened his eyes and a silver aura surrounded his blade and with a shout 'Sozo no hono' he unleashed a torrent of silver flames around himself. The flames danced around him with a comforting heat and strangely he was not affected by the flame's power.

"Don't ever fear your power Indra. Never doubt yourself. Always stand tall with your head held high. Never hesitate or despair because to you everything can be created or destroyed at your leisure. For you nothing ever truly dies. We transcend death." Kagetsu said

Suddenly Indra found himself inside his own body as he returned to the real world.

"Strange. For a moment I thought you were sleeping." A voice from his back observed

Indra looked back and saw Ulquiorra Cifer standing behind him with an inquiring look.

"I lost myself in the peace and quiet here on the roof. Do you come here often Ulquiorra." Indra asked

"Not always but sometimes, yes." Ulquiorra answered

"Hmm…. Then I won't disturb you" Indra said as he stood up

"Aizen sama has returned to Las Noches. He was asking for you." Ulquiorra said

"Then I will meet him right away." Indra said as he disappeared in a sonido

**XXXXXXX **

Indra found Aizen outside Las Noches with two other people. He immediately recognised Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tosen. Indra landed before them silently using a sonido.

"It is rather frustrating is it not Kaname. You cannot sense Indra's spirit energy can you." Aizen asked with a light smile

"Indeed Aizen sama. It is quite frustrating." Kaname replied

"Forgive Kaname. He is blind in his eyes but he sees through sensing spuritual energy of others. So it is a little inconvenient for him to be in your presence." Aizen explained

Indra merely nodded to acknowledge he understood Aizen but otherwise remained silent.

"I am Gin Ichimaru. It is nice to meet you in person." Gon introduced

"Likewise." Indra curtly replied

"They will be here for a brief time in order to observe your kido. It is not everyday that we get to analyse a kido that is casted by a being like you. So if you are ready I will attack with a Hadou spell defend with a barrier spell.So are you ready." Aizen asked

"Go on." I dra replied

"Scattered beast bones! Spire, Crimson Crystal, Steel Wheels! The wind if it moves, the sky if it stops, the tone of the spear striking fills the lone castle!

Hadou 63: Thunder Roar Cannon (Raikouhou)" Aizen shouted as yellow lightning gathered at his fingertips and fired off a bolt of energy at Indra.

"Bakudou 44: Barrier (Sekisho)" Indra casted and a yellow barrier sprung up on his palm that spread around and blocked the attack from Aizen easily.

As the lightning failed to pierce the barrier, Aizen cut off the attack.

"Hadou 73: Twin Lotus of Crashing Blue Fire (Sōren Sōkatsui)" Gin casted a kido and two shots of blue fire was fired but Indra's barrier still held up against the attack.

"Hadou 88: Flying Dragon-Striking Heaven-Shaking Thunder Cannon (Hiryu Gekizoku Shinten Raiho)" Aizen shouted as a gigantic blast of spiritual energy aimed straight for Indra.

Indra dismissed the previous barrier and casted another more powerful one.

"Bakudou 81: Splitting Void (Danku)" Indra formed a large rectangular barrier that held back the catastrophic explosion. Indra now understood the full extend of Aizen's spirit energy and it was truly at its peak right now.

Indra dismissed the barrier and using sonido he appeared before Aizen.

"Truly impressive. Your barriers are very strong." Gin said as he opened his eyes to look at Indra

"Truly spectacular. Your growth rate is what astounds me. To think you managed to perfect such high level Bakudou spells in such a short time. What about your Hadou soells?" Aizen enquired

"I am still perfecting them. The Bakudou cones easy to me than the Hadou spells." Indra said

"It is still impressive that you managed to learn such high level spells with minimum instructions." Tosen added

"It is good that you are faniliar with Shinigami arts. Within a few months our time in soul society will end. I have a special role for you to play in our departure from soul society." Aizen smirked

Indra looked at the other two Shinigami for a clarification but all he got was a creepy smile and an emotionless expression from them.

"Don't worry about it. In time I will call for you. Until then continue your training." Aizen said as he disappeared in a flash step followed by Gin and Tosen. Indra felt the spirit energy of Aizen and his two companions enter Las Noches.

Looks like he will have to step up the training to master all Hadou spells, Indra thought.

Fortunately Indra possessed complete control over his spirit energy which was the prime reason for his fast pace of mastering the Shinigami arts. Soon he will be able to learn the other numberless forbidden Kido as well.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE :**

**Now, one more chapter is over. I am speeding up things to get to the Ryoka arc.**

**Also I hope I have cleared up a few things related to the Soul King, Yhwach and the history of Quincy.**

**But there is also a doubt I have if any of you guys can clarify, please do so. The separate dimension in which the Soul king and the Royal guards reside, is it similar to the old world where is no death or is it similar to soul society. I mean the royal guards are literally ancient compared to Yammamoto and yet they don't seem that old. The shinigami like Ichibē Hyōsube, the leader of Royal guards to my knowledge is the person that names all Zanpakuto.**

**So if you guys can clarify this little detail I will appreciate it. Also if there are any mistakes in the story I spun around the Soul king, Yhwach and Quincy please inform me. I will correct it if it suits the plot I have in mind. **

**Hope you guys liked the powers I gave for Indra. A little over the line I know but the guy is the combination of three spiritual species. I can't really make him a reflection of Ichigo afterall. You must have noticed Indra has blue eyes now instead of brown when he was human. This is his own version of 'Almighty'. Yhwach is going to be so pissed along with Ichibe. I am open to suggestions for any addition of new powers to Indra. PM or review if you have any preference.**

**I would also like to congratulate 'Hadrian.Caeser' for being spot on in recognising Indra with the Indra in Naruto. I based the character from the first Uchiha. **


	6. A small twist with enough spin

**HUECO MUNDO**

In the beginning Nymeria thought her master was a sadistic person who enjoyed the pain of others or at the very least enjoyed inflicting as much pain on her person. But after repeated training sessions she felt herself improving at a steady pace in her powers. Like most of the Arrancars she thought the powers she obtained from the transformation was the peak power she could achieve but her master Indra once again proved her wrong. With his help and guidance she has been able to raise her powers to match or even outright surpass Harribel's power within a short time.

After the incident with Harribel and her Fraccion they also joined with Nymeria to train their powers. It was then she realized the true power of Harribel's Fraccion. Individually they were weak and could be dealt with easily but together they equaled the power of an Espada. If Harribel also joins with them then they would be unbeatable for an Espada or a Shinigami Captain. That was what she thought until her master defeated them and Nymeria together with ease.

Even if they failed spectacularly before her master she could see that Indra was very impressed the fight they put up. Nymeria and Harribel had even used their resurrection against Indra but he proved how vastly inferior their power was compared to his own. While Harribel controlled water Nymeria controlled the winds. The sky maybe her domain but the whole world bowed before her master. Even the Primera Espada was no match against her master.

Nymeria thought Coyote Starrk and his young Fraccion to be a weird as they would regularly observe her and Harribel's training with master Indra. Strangely enough most of the time Starrk seems to sleep over a sand dune while his young Fraccion whose name was Lilynette Gingerbuck jumped around in joy as she observed their battles. In the end the little Fraccion managed to rope in Coyote Starrk to fight her master. The sheer power the Primera possessed took her by surprise briefly. Starrk threw around ceros so effortlessly and for a time she thought Starrk would prove to be a real challenge for her master but Indra was very calm and collected in facing all of the attacks from Starrk. Eventually her master defeated Starrk by binding him down with Kido spells.

Until that moment the hollows of Las Noches were very much dismissive of Indra as Aizen had not marked him as an Espada. Then there was also the fact that there was no mask fragment and hollow hole on Indra which the Arrancars held as a symbol of their previous hollow forms. These two reasons resulted in Indra being alienated from the rest of the Arrancars but after defeating Starrk so easily he proved his superiority and power over the other hollows earning him their respect and fear.

Right now her master was meditating in their quarters. For some time her master has been regularly meditating with his Zanpakuto on his lap. Suddenly she heard a knock on the door. She stood up and opened the door to find Harribel outside.

"Lord Aizen has returned from Soul Society. He is asking for Indra to attend a meeting of the Espada." Harribel said

"I will inform him right away lady Harribel." Nymeria replied with a smile

Harribel nodded and left the hallway to the throne room of Las Noches. Nymeria immediately went near Indra. She found him awake from his meditation.

"Lord Aizen has called a meeting of the Espada. He asks that you attend my lord." Nymeria informed her master.

"Very well… While I am gone meditate yourself. It will help you to unlock a unique power within you which will be very useful in the near future." Indra stood up and put on his white jacket and left the room.

"As you wish my lord" Nymeria sat down and started meditating despite the doubts she had about its use.

**XXXXXXX**

Indra entered the throne room and found Aizen sitting on his throne which was elevated so high that he had to strain his neck to look at the Shinigami captain.

"Now that Indra is here we can begin this meeting. I called this meeting to brief you about some of my plans for our coming conflict with Soul Society." Aizen stopped and observed he had every Espada's attention and then continued.

"The captains of the thirteen court guard squads can be easily dealt with by the Espada in this room. The only threat that we will face is from the head captain of Gotei 13, Gnryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. He is an old Shinigami that has lived for a thousand years since the founding of thirteen court guard squads." Aizen said as he pressed a switch on the arm of his throne and suddenly a holographic image of the head captain appeared before them in the middle of the throne room.

"I already have a plan to deal with him which is coming along successfully so far. But one of the real threat that will be posed is by this man." Aizen pressed on the switch again and Indra saw the image of Kisuke Urahara appear in the room.

"His name is Kisuke Urahara. He is the former captain of squad 12 and the most brilliant man I have ever come across in Soul Society. Right now he is in exile living in the human world but this man's intellect is very dangerous. He is very unpredictable and a patient schemer. This is why I am changing my plans slightly to ensure our success no matter what."Aizen stopped as he waited for any response from his audience.

"What did you change lord Aizen." Ulquiorra asked

"My original plan was to arrive in Hueco Mundo after my role in Soul Society comes to an end completely cutting off any ties. But now that we have Indra who cannot be recognized by the shinigami as an arrancar, he will be in soul society posing as a Shinigami among them. If I know Urahara correctly he has the ability to close access to the soul society from outside which will be problematic. So I need someone on the inside to open the gates of heaven and this can be only done by a very skilled and resourceful person. So, I hope you are ready for the task ahead of you Indra." Aizen finished his explanation

"Even if I cannot be immediately identified they can recognize me as someone that is not in their database easily." Indra pointed out

"That is taken care of. I have made the necessary paperwork and back stories as well along with a healthy dose of real memories courtesy of Kyoka Suigetsu." Aizen explained

Indra thought for a while but nodded in the end showing his agreement to the plan.

"In that case I will have to debrief you about your back story" Aizen stood up from his throne and stood before Indra in a flash step.

"This meeting is dismissed."Aizen declared and waited as the Espada exited the throne room

"Come, there are several things you should be aware of before going to soul society." Aizen said as he led Indra to another room explaining his plans and necessary measures to take before their departure.

**XXXXXXX**

Indra entered his chambers and found Nymeria sleeping on the floor. He pointed a finger at his Fraccion "Hadou 1: Sho"

The force behind the Kido knocked her into the opposite wall. Nymeria woke up with a groan and immediately stood alert as she saw her master before her.

"You fell asleep instead of meditating as I have ordered." Indra intimidated her with a hard tone.

"I am sorry my lord. It won't happen again. I promise." Nymeria bowed her head in apology

"I am not so sure about your promises especially now that I am going away to soul society with Aizen." Indra said as he walked past her

"Wait! You are going to soul society with lord Aizen?" Nymeria asked as she followed him into the library.

"Yes. It is part of his plan and I can easily blend in among the Shinigami easily. He needs someone on the inside after the war starts incase the soul society manages to ward off any outside entries to their dimension." Indra said as he searched for a book

"Then let me come with you." Nymeria panicked

"No. You will be immediately recognized by the Shinigami. You will stay here and support Harribel and her Fraccion. That's my order." Indra asserted his stance

"As you wish…What are you looking for lord Indra." Nymeria asked as she watched her master continued to search all the books in the library until finally he took a book and a small smile graced his lips.

"I was looking for a special type of seal that can seal away some of my reitsu like the limiters the Shinigami captains use while they visit the human world and now I have found it. This will be needed soon enough and Nymeria don't think I am abandoning you. We will meet again soon and I expect you to discover the power that is buried deep in your soul." Indra said as he patted on her head in a rare show of affection and walked out of the room leaving a stunned Nymeria.

She absently placed her hand on top of her head. That was the nicest thing her master has ever done for her and slowly a smile blossomed on her face.

**XXXXXXX**

Indra stood at the very top of Las Noches alone. He sat down and closed his eyes and he was immediately pulled into his inner world. Indra entered the city that was filled with skyscrapers but he noticed several changes immediately. There were a group of huge rocks floating over the city and the light from the full moon reflected off its polished surface. Indra moved closer to inspect the strange addition and found Kagetsu standing there gazing at the moon.

"An unexpected twist in the plot you didn't foresee has happened isn't it." Kagetsu asked serenely

"Yes. I didn't expect Aizen to take such an action. I thought he would be keeping me under observation in Hueco Mundo." Indra commented as he too joined to gaze at the moon

"Perhaps you saw Aizen in a different light. Perhaps he is intimidated by your presence in Hueco Mundo especially as he is close to obtaining Urahara's Hogyoku. Until he manages to transcend the boundaries of hollows and Shinigami you represent a much greater threat to him than anyone could. Your presence in Soul Society leaves him free to mobilize the Hollows and you yourself will be under the observation of Shinigami of Soul Society after Aizen's betrayal." Kagetsu sat down on the rock after the explanation

"What do you think I should do?" Indra asked

"You have three options. One, kill him now and take control of the Espada. Two, follow his command and enter soul society but kill him the moment he obtains the other Hogyoku and return with it to Hueco Mundo and rule as king. Three, stay in Soul Society just as he asks but use that time to prepare for real threats like Yhwach and possibly the Royal Guard. Aizen is a small fly compared to the other beings. So prepare and learn. Your disadvantage is that you are inexperienced than all your enemies. Staying in Soul Society will change that somewhat." Kagetsu expressed his opinion

"What could I learn in soul society?" Indra asked with a scoff

"For instance I am sure you would be eager to know what happened to your mother." Kagetsu said as he stood up and turned to look at Indra

"What? Why would I be interested in that?" Indra asked in confusion

"Don't think you can lie to me Indra. Don't forget that I am a part of your soul. I know you didn't plan on her death when you confronted Grand Fisher. That was never your plan in the first place. You thought by delaying the hollow with your meager Quincy powers you could save her at the expense of your life and thereby you calculated that the hollow inside you will take over as the predominant entity thereby crushing the Yhwach's influence. But your plans fell apart when you realized Masaki died as your father and Urahara were late. Now tell me don't you really want to find your mother or not." Kagetsu asked

Clouds formed over the night sky and shielded the full moon partially.

"I accept what you are saying is true but remember, I have lived a life before." Indra pointed out

"So what, you still consider Masaki as your mother. If you are thinking your attachment as a weakness then don't. She is the source of two of your powers. You are indebted to her for your whole life and I know you love her in your heart. The power that you possess is her gift. Let me tell you a little secret. Your soul has never been joyful except for one moment and that was when you stood before your mother bravely and protected her with your life. It was that act that shattered Yhwach's influence on us. Masaki will not make you weak she will only make you stronger. I have said my piece and now you must decide the next course of action." Kagetsu said and pressed his thumb on Indra's forehead.

With a gasp Indra woke up from his tranquil state and found himself at the top of Las Noches. His heart was racing as certain emotions that he buried deep in his heart began to resurface. It was true that he felt a weight settle on his heart when he learned about Masaki from Aizen. Indra had not planned for her death that day. In fact he was trying to be the one to replace her that day and when he learned that he had failed, he ruthlessly suppressed the urge to strike down Aizen as he knew that Aizen was the one to send Grand Fisher that day to target them.

He spent the rest of the time there on the rooftop as he revaluated his decisions and plans. Kagetsu's words might have been harsh but he knew the spirit was expressing what his heart has been trying to communicate to him. He must find a way to balance his ambition and heart somehow otherwise he will be torn apart from the inside.

**XXXXXXX**

Aizen waited in the throne room and he was not disappointed as Indra walked into the room in a sedate pace.

"I am ready." Indra declared resolutely.

"Good. You remember the back story I have fabricated." Aizen asked

Indra nodded.

"Very well then, let's go." Aizen said as he opened a portal directly into Soul Society and walked into it.

Indra looked at the throne one last time and followed after Aizen. He stepped into a brightly lit room which was surrounded by many monitors showing various readings about various dimensions.

"Welcome to our little hideout. This is where we monitor certain interests of mine and you will need a change of clothes." Aizen said as he looked at Gin who was standing near him.

"You can change in that room." Gin handed over the standard black uniform of Shinigami to Indra and pointed to a small room nearby.

Indra took the clothes and changed into the standard Shinigami attire and stepped out of the room.

"So who are you now?" Aizen asked with a smile

"Kurosaki Indra of Kido corps, reporting for duty Captain Aizen." Indra answered

"Where are you from Kurosaki?" Gin asked

"I am from Hokutan district of West Rukongai, Captain." Indra fell into his role smoothly

"How long have you been in service." Aizen asked

"Five years in the Kido Corps since graduating from the academy Captain." Indra answered

"Good enough. The Kido Corps is very secretive of its members so there will be no problem for you to get familiar with soul society. After you have familiarized with the Soul Society I will be transferring you to the tenth division. You have a week until that happens. Gin and Kaname will help you with all other necessary information. " Aizen said as he left the room

"Come here Indra. All the data that is relevant to your position is here." Kaname said as he pointed to a screen.

Gin typed a few commands into the system and Indra saw the detailed information of all places like his supposed home district, all the captains and lieutenants, all the 13 squads, some members and many other spots and laws of Soul Society.

"You have a lot of work to do so we won't disturb you. Study everything in there and memorize this as much as you can. Visit these spots and places that are mentioned here by yourself and engage subtly with several low profile people. If you have any doubts I will be waiting down the next room." Gin said with wide creepy smile and left with Kaname Tosen.

Indra looked at the information and smiled. He was a professional assassin in his previous life and he knew information was the key to victory. At last he was in his element now, he thought with glee.

**SOUL SOCIETY**** (After one week)**

"Captain Hitsugaya, a moment of your time if you will." Aizen said as he walked behind the captain of squad 10 with Indra by his side.

"Captain Aizen. How may I help you." Toshiro asked politely as Aizen was one of the few captains he respected.

"The last time we spoke I mentioned a Kido Corps member who I thought was wasted there. Well this is that young man."Aizen pointed at Indra

"Kurosaki Indra, sir. It is an honor to meet you Captain Hitsugaya." Indra bowed his head in respect.

"Hmm….Don't know if this is a good idea, Captain Aizen. You have more experience and track record in shaping up others than me." Toshiro modestly said

"That may be but I think Indra's talent is wasted in Kido Corps. He is very good at Kido but I think he has far more than that to offer for the thirteen court guard squads. In your division he will get more field experience and you yourself will get a good training partner. Trust me you will be amazed with his skill." Aizen promised

"Very well… I will accept him into my division. Please send the transfer paperwork to Matsumoto." Toshiro said looking at Aizen

"Will do and thank you Captain Hitsugaya." Aizen said

Toshiro nodded and looked at Indra "Report for duty tomorrow at sharp eight in the morning."

"Yes sir." Indra once again bowed his head

Toshiro nodded to Aizen and left to his squad barracks.

"That is just the start. Slowly gain his confidence but always speak of me in a negative light with him." Aizen whispered to Indra

"As you wish Captain but I have a doubt." Indra said as they walked back to squad five barracks

"The academy instructors will never identify me as will the class which I supposedly graduated from." Indra said

"I have already taken care of that. Most of your batch mates were dropouts and you yourself are reported as a reclusive person. So there is no problem in that front. As for the academy instructors, they hardly remember everyone that graduated. But to alleviate any suspicion I have been subtly speaking with them about you and your stellar performance. They are hardly very intelligent creatures my friend. If they were they would be working in the squads not as a teacher in the academy." Aizen said with a smirk and he disappeared in a flash step.

Indra waited for some moment but followed after Aizen in a flash step. Tomorrow will be a new beginning for him.


	7. Passed the test

**SOUL SOCIETY **

Toshiro Hitsugaya the captain of squad 10 was having a really bad day. His lieutenant Rngiku Matsumoto as always has dumped a huge load of paperwork on his desk. He was sure there were several papers that were reserved for his lieutenant as well among the huge pile on his table. Right now the pile of paperwork was so high that he had to stand on the table to take the topmost paper. That was a humiliating experience as he was very conscious about his height and his predicament reminded him of his lack of height. The door to his office slid open and he saw Matsumoto enter with a large stack of papers on her hand. This time Toshiro couldn't control himself.

"From where do you conjure up all these infernal things? How long have you been neglecting your duty Matsumoto?" Toshiro thundered

"But captain there is only a week's work here. After this is done everything will be over."Matsumoto pouted

"Then what is this mountain on my table?" Toshiro asked incredulously

"That's the work related to the week before this one." Rangiku pointed her eyes at the stack she was holding

"What were you doing all this week and the last week?"Toshiro screamed

"Well, the newbie had to be shown around the squad barracks, captain."Matsumoto answered as she placed the paperwork on his table and took a seat on the couch

"That would only take a few hours of your time Matsumoto." Toshiro reigned in his temper

"Well he had to be introduced to everyone. The poor guy was in the kido corps captain and you know how reclusive they are. I had to help the guy to get over his withdrawn character. Besides I think you found a genius like yourself captain." Rangiku happily said as she twirled a lock of her blond hair between her fingers

"Genius..? Captain Aizen said that he would be a good training partner. Is he that good?" Toshiro asked momentarily forgetting his anger.

"Well yo can see for yourself today. Indra and our third seat, Masaki Nagai is about to have a match today." Rangiku casually mentioned

"What..? When did this happen and why was I not informed of this?" Toshiro became angry again

"But captain you were the one who insisted on doing all the paperwork. So I had to look after the squad in your absence." Rangiku pouted

"Don't try to put all the blame on me Matsumoto. Why did you allow Indra to even fight our third seat? He only has six years of experience being a shinigami and that too in the kido corps." Toshiro gritted his teeth in anger

"I didn't just put him up against our third seat in a day. I had him fight all the other seated officers below and he defeated them very easily. He reminds me of you when you entered the squad under Captain Shiba." Rangiku had a faraway look on her face

Toshiro also became uncomfortable as he was reminded of his old captain who was probably dead in his last mission.

"Inform me when the match begins." Toshiro ordered and returned his attention back to the huge pile of paperwork on his table

"Will do captain." Rangiku quite happily escaped from Toshiro's room

**XXXXXX**

Indra stood at the training yard of squad 10 facing his opponent who was staring daggers at him. He glanced sideways to find Toshiro and Rangiku observing him. The other members of squad 10 were also surrounding the yard but they were far back to give the combatants space.

"This match will determine who holds the third seat in our squad. There will be no fatal attacks and the match will be over if one of the combatants surrenders or is unable to continue battle. Am I clear?" Toshiro asked aloud

"Yes captain."Indra and Misaki agreed to the rules

"Then begin." Toshiro and Rangiku vanished in a flash step leaving the two combatants alone. Toshiro knew this was not going to be as easy as Indra thought as he knew Misaki was someone on par with Rangiku.

Indra looked right into the black onyx eyes of Masaki and they both vanished in a blur of flash step. They met at the middle of the ground as their swords clashed with a ringing sound. Misaki twisted her wrist and dragged her blade in a swipe that came close to Indra's face. Indra reciprocated as he raised his arm appropriately and managed to slide her sword with his zanpakuto. Misaki was not done and she stabbed her sword aiming for his right knee. Indra angled his body and let the sword pass harmlessly at the same time he switched sword hands and swiped with his left hand and managed to nip the hand of Misaki who managed to dodge partially drawing first blood. Misaki was about to rush in to attack but Indra vanished from line of sight. She instinctively ducked her head and she felt a whistling sound as a sword passed over her head. Then she felt a huge force on her back and she was blown away from the spot. She stabbed her Zanpakuto on the ground to arrest her movement and turned on Indra with a thunderous expression.

"You kicked on my back intentionally you pervert."Misaki accused

"I was aiming for your knee but you were the one who suddenly decided to lower yourself to the ground. Perhaps you are the pervert." Indra goaded back

"How dare you?" Misaki growled and rushed in and began hacking and slashing with her sword. But Indra gracefully avoided each attack sometimes by swatting away her sword by his own. Tired with her inability to scratch him Misaki went for an overhead slash but Indra disappeared with a flash step. She turned to her back and saw that infernal guy raise his palm at her.

"**Hadou 31: Shakkaho (Red Flame Cannon)" **

Indra chanted the kido spell and a red ball of energy launched at Misaki from his palm at incredible speed. She was caught flat footed and raised her sword to defend against the incoming kido. The red ball of energy blew her away and her hands were burned by the power behind the spell.

"**Bakudo 4: Hainako (Crawling Rope)" **Indra casted a binding kido.

Before she could recover she was tied up by several energy ropes around her.

"Surrender yourself." Indra commanded

"You might have won some baffles against the other members of this division with your kido. But don't think you can intimidate me with such low level kido, Kurosaki." Misaki smirked and held her Zanpakuto in a reverse grip despite the restraints around her.

"**Rejuvinate, Shizen no megami (Nature Goddess)"**

Masaki activated her shikai and the sword emitted a green aura and began to drip a green liquid into the ground. Suddenly thick roots burst out of the ground and broke the restraints around her. Misakai looked at Indra with a confident smirk and pointed her sword at him. The thick roots that was growing around her burst out of the ground in large volume and rushed at Indra.

Indra vanished in a flash step but the moment he landed on the ground roots burst out of the ground and bound his left leg. With a clean swipe of his sword he cut down the roots and vanished in a flash step again.

"You are going nowhere you little creep." Misaki shouted and stabbed her sword into the ground and a green aura surrounded her and her black hair blew in the wind as she exerted more of her spiritual pressure.

"**Jukai Kotan (Deep Forest Emergence)"**

Masaki whispered and the entire training ground began to get filled with lush trees. It even consumed Indra despite his speed as he had limited mobility as trees began to block his path. The trees and plants converged on his position and buried him down by the thick woods.

"Call the match Captain. He has lost."Rangiku said to Toshiro

"It's not over yet." Toshiro absently replied as he felt the reitsu of Indra in the forest before him

"**Transcend, Kagetsu (Bright Moon)"**

All of the assembled shinigami heard a voice and their vision were consumed by a bright light and the trees that had converged upon Indra were blown apart by the spiritual pressure exerted by him. All of the squad members saw the released state of Indra's Zanpakuto. Kagetsu shined brightly with blue vein like patterns spread out along the periphery of the blade.

"Don't think this is over." Misaki growled with frustration as she never thought her opponent also had shikai. She once again manipulated the trees and plants to attack Indra.

"Your powers, while impressive are very vulnerable to me." Indra smirked lightly

He stabbed his Zanpakuto into the ground and activated another technique.

"**Hi no okoku (Kingdom of fire)"**

A blue circle of fire appeared around Indra. From there it began to expand and one by one many other concentric circles began to form and the forest began to disintegrate into ash.

Misaki was struck speechless by this turn of events and she didn't expect the next move by Indra as well and it caught her fair and square.

Indra raised his Zanpakuto and brought it down with a yell of **"Getsuga Tensho"**.

A blue arc of energy escaped from his blade and struck Misaki consuming her in a bright explosion. Smoke and dust covered her spot and as the dust settled everyone found their third seat down on the ground unconscious with her Zanpakuto returning to its sealed form.

"The match is in Indra's favor. He is the third seat of squad 10 from now on." Toshiro declared and there was a small applause from the other squad members. Rangiku ordered some of the squad 4 members to take Misaki to the hospital wing.

Indra dismissed his shikai and sheathed his zanpakuto as Toshiro and Rangiku approached him.

"Misaki was not an easy opponent and yet you have managed to defeat her easily. You are easily lieutenant level or maybe even beyond. Why did captain Aizen easily give you away?" Toshiro asked

"I was uncomfortable with working under captain Aizen. Perhaps he noticed my reluctance and decided to transfer me." Indra answered with a shrug

"Why were you disturbed by captain Aizen?" Toshiro asked curiously

"It's mostly because of my Zanpakuto. You see Kagetsu is a light based Zanpakuto and for some reason captain Aizen's spirit energy affects him in some ways." Indra explained

"Didn't you say this to captain Aizen?" Toshiro asked perplexed by the odd answer

"I did. He said it was quite natural as his zanpakuto has the power to manipulate light by the water it produces. Captain Aizen also thought it was a farfetched conclusion so he promised me to find another suitable division to work on. The duties of Kido corps were delicate in nature and a single mistake might have spelled doom for the entire division. So he arranged for my transfer." Indra answered easily

"Hmm… This is quite the strange tale. Tell me truthfully. Have you achieved bankai?" Toshiro asked seriously

"Not yet captain. But I can summon my zanpakuto spirit outside into the material world." Indra admitted freely

"That is the first step. You must maintain the zanpakuto spirit in the physical world for longer period of time and force it to teach you the bankai. Anyways as the third seat you have certain duties to perform and if you are not capable of executing them you will lose the position you have earned. Power alone does not determine rank in my division. Am I clear?" Toshiro asked

"Yes captain." Indra agreed

"Good. Rangiku will explain all your duties." Toshiro looked meaningfully at his lieutenant.

"Oh yes. I will deal with our new third seat captain. Don't you have all those paperwork to complete?" Rangiku subtly reminded him

Toshiro threw a cold look at Rangiku but walked back to his office to complete his work.

"As our captain said you have several duties to perform. Most importantly you have to assign patrol duties to your subordinates in the Hokutan district of Rukongai. That district is entirely your responsibility. You will have to constantly report to me about squad movements in your area of control. Also you will have to file proper paperwork before you assign any patrol duty." Rangiku listed off the duties one by one

"Is that it?" Indra asked

"No there are several more but as a test of your efficiency I would like you to do some work." Rangiku said

"What work?" Indra asked

"Come." Rangiku led Indra to Toshiro's office

"Captain it seems Indra has graciously agreed to help you in doing the paperwork. Moreover it will also help him as he is now the third seat." Rangiku happily said

"You are right. I will be able to correct any mistakes here and now. Take a seat Kurosaki." Toshiro pointed at the chair that was conveniently close to the table. Indra sighed and sits down and began to start the most boring work in the whole universe.

Later that night after the entire squad 10 was sleeping soundly a single figure walked out of the barracks. But strangely the patrol guards couldn't see this figure as the person was under an illusion courtesy of Koyoka Suigetsu.

Indra found the ability of complete hypnosis a very useful tool to have as it allowed him a lot of freedom to move in soul society. The only problem was he could not use this ability over people have not yet seen the release of Koyoka Suigetsu. That's why at the moment he was merely scouting out his target area. He was extra careful to suppress his reitsu as much as he could and scouted out one of the noble houses of soul society. As he suspected the clan grounds were protected by several barriers and some of them were quit alien to his senses. He travelled around the barriers to check for any weaknesses. There were several but he had the feeling they were too strategically placed and to be intentional. With that knowledge he returned back to his room in squad 10 barracks.

Indra laid down on his bed and thought of how to bypass the barriers he encountered. First he will have to identify the barriers and for that a visit to the spirit library was quite necessary. Then there was the need for absolute secrecy as he was sure he was being monitored by Aizen too closely for now. Today was a risk but he was counting on to the fact that Aizen had no knowledge that his own powers could be used against him. Perhaps it would be better to just search for some of the barriers that he had yet to learn and being a kido specialist he could easily accept such knowledge. With that thought he closed his eyes and slept peacefully.

**XXXXX **

Misaki woke up in the patient ward of squad gritted her teeth in anger as she realized that she lost the match against Kurosaki Indra before the assembled squad. She was not angry she lost the duel but what she was that she lost in front of the whole squad.

Till this day she had enjoyed the superiority over the other members of her squad. They were all in some ways related to the noble elites of the Seireitei living in the luxury afforded to them by those connections and relations. But she was someone who came from one of the poorest districts of Rukongai and some of the members of her squad never failed to mention that now and then. In fact she was always mocked in the Shino academy as her batch mates were all from noble families.

In the end the joke was on them as she managed to pass most of her subjects with top marks while all those who mocked her were left at the bottom. Again fate played a cruel hand as she had to endure their company again when she joined the shinigami as family power can also buy a position in the thirteen court guard squads. But that didn't let her down instead it made her more determined than ever to improve her powers and that's how she came to this position.

When she joined squad 10 Isshin Shiba was the captain and in the beginning she cursed her luck. But later she realized her captain was not like other nobles and was quite the opposite in her opinion. That doesn't mean she liked but she had no problem in respecting such a person especially as he never showed any discrimination against her or anybody for that matter. The nobles in the squad were quite happy when the captain went missing in the human world in his last mission.

But those things never affected her as she was focused on her training and in the end her hard work paid off as she achieved the shikai release of her Zanpakuto. Even though she couldn't become the lieutenant she was comfortable to work under Rangiku and captain Hitsugaya. Both of them were from Rukongai but Misaki was too much alienated from the rest of the squad and she felt a little alone.

She could have established a better relationship with Rangiku but she didn't like her lieutenant as a person. Rangiku keeps a blind eye to the blatant discrimination against Misaki in the squad. Professionally she agreed with Rangiku as involving in such a problem might affect the efficiency in the squad but she could not help herself to dislike Rangiku as a person. That was the only reason why she never bothered to befriend her lieutenant. Besides she didn't want to be a problem for Rangiku as she was sure Rangiku must also have these same problems in a different way.

Still that left her friendless. There were very few Rukongai residents in Seireitei and those that did were real nut jobs that either became too bitter with their lives or they were the glorified pets of the nobles. Kuchiki Rukia was a stellar example of the later. Whenever Misaki saw that little bitch all she could see was a leashed dog who was led around by a master and in this case Kuchiki Byakuya and his stupid clan. In her mind that was the worst possible fate one person could have. Then there were those psychos like the captain of squad 11 and his thugs. They were the worst of the worst and she despised them with a passion.

She was brought out of her thoughts as a squad 4 member entered her room.

"You have a visitor waiting outside Nagai san. Shall I allow him in." the nameless 4th squad member asked

"A visitor for me…? Let him in." Misaki said unsurely

Her eyes widened briefly as she saw Kurosaki Indra enter into the room. She sat up in her bed and looked curiously at the shinigami before her.

"Good morning Nagai san. I hope you are feeling well." Indra sat down near her bed on a chair

I am fine. If you are here to gloat…" Masaki trailed off as she was presented with a box full of green apples which were her favorites.

"I didn't come here to gloat. I came here to check upon you. I do need a good training partner and seeing as you are a fellow Rukongai resident feel it would be best. If you are okay with it I would be grateful for your help." Indra pressed the box to her lap

"What are you playing at?" Misaki asked slowly

"You should know how difficult it is to work with the residents of Seireitei. You are the only one with an attitude that I like in the squad. So if you will I would like us to be friends." Indra gave his hand and looked pointedly at her.

Misaki looked at the hand and hesitated for a bit but in the end she shook hands with Indra her first real friend.

"I know you didn't have anything for breakfast. So eat the apples. They taste good or so I am told." Indra took a knife and cut the apple into little pieces and handed them to Misaki.

"Thank you." Misaki took the pieces hesitantly and literally swallowed it down in one go. She blushed as she saw Indra was smiling at her actions but she also felt a weight was lifted off her heart by spending time with Indra. They spend the rest of the morning talking with each other. In the end after buying her lunch Indra left to squad 10 as he only took a half day leave. Misaki was in high spirits that day and by evening she was released from the care of squad 4. It was with a small smile she entered the squad 10 and Indra was there to receive her. From that day onwards they became good friends and perhaps more.

**XXXXXX**

"Look who is here captain Aizen." Gin pointed at the door to their secret lair

Aizen turned to find Indra closing the door behind him.

"Welcome Indra. I hope you are settling in well with squad 10." Aizen asked

"Well enough. I came here for another reason. I would like to know if you have any knowledge of my mother." Indra asked

Aizen turned to face Indra completely serious.

"What makes you think I know about your mother's whereabouts?" Aizen asked

"You knew my mother died at the same time in the human world as I did. After all you knew when I died as you said yourself to me in Las Noches. So do you know where she is in Soul Society?"Indra asked

"I do. Are you sure you want to meet her? She will not remember you or anyone else from your family. The konso removes the memories from all souls. It is very rare for a soul to retain even a fraction of memory of their previous life." Aizen explained

"It does not matter whether she remembers me or not. I just need to meet her one last time." Indra said

"Very well then….I will take you to her." Aizen stood up and walked close to Indra

They both went outside the secret lab and disappeared in a flash step. Indra followed Aizen and soon they began to move faster with repeated flash steps. After some time, Aizen stopped moving and settled on top of a roof and Indra soon arrived at the same spot.

"This is the district of Sakahone, the 76th district of Rukongai." Aizen said as he observed an old shrine

Indra looked at the shrine Aizen was observing and he saw the name plaque of the deity worshipped in the shrine, Mimihagi.

"There is god worship even in a place that is filled with dead souls. Is this a shrine for the soul king?"Indra asked acting ignorant

"You could say Mimihagi is a part of the soul king. I think they are just tales to glorify the soul king. Your mother works in that shrine." Aizen said

They waited for some time hiding their presence and soon enough they saw Masaki coming to the shrine in some ceremonial robes. There were others as well and Indra thought it would be better to just watch from a distance.

"You should not dwell on the past Indra. You have a great destiny before you and your mother will only be a distraction." Aizen subtly spoke

"I just wanted to know she was well enough. Now that I know she is here I am satisfied. I will not trouble you again captain Aizen." Indra promised

"Think nothing of it. So are we going or are you interested in speaking with her." Aizen asked

"Before we go I have to do something." Indra unleashed his spiritual pressure and focused it on the area around the shrine. The effect was fast as all the people began to fall down unconscious under the weight of his spiritual pressure. After making sure no one was awake he stood near the downed form of his mother.

"Limit release" Indra whispered as he pressed his finger near his heart and the seal that bound his spiritual pressure became released and suddenly came into his full strength.

"What are you doing Indra?" Aizen asked in confusion as he stepped near him

"As you said I should not dwell on the past and she is a reminder of my past that I cannot easily discard. So there is only one option." Indra raised his hand and using his quincy powers he formed a reishi sword and plunged the blade straight through the heart of Masaki. She let out a choked gurgle as blood filled her mouth but before she could look at him he channeled his reitsu and completely destroyed her soul. Masaki's body glowed with a blue colour and disintegrated into spirit particles.

"You have removed her from existence. She will never again have rebirth." Aizen commented with a curious look

"Good. That was my intention as well. Let's go now unless you have something to do here." Indra looked at Aizen in the eye

"I am surprised and you have once again gone beyond my expectations. I find you to be a very interesting person." Aizen said with a brief smile. They both vanished in a blur of speed and returned back to where they came from.

**XXXXXX**

Indra sat near one of the running stream of water and meditated. Soon he felt himself he entered his inner world. This time he found Kagetsu standing on top of a building looking up at his little creation of floating rocks. Indra stood near the spirit and looked at the rocks.

"So you destroyed her soul without any remorse." Kagetsu asked

"There is no need for me to feel any remorse. You were already creating a stable home for her upon that rock. I merely removed a version of our mother from soul society. The soul that exists in our world and the one in soul society is not different and we both would prefer the soul in our world. Nothing truly ever dies for us." Indra said and sure enough he saw the soul of his mother staying at the top of the flying home Kagetsu created.

"I see. So you have now finally learned to let go of the material world by sacrificing the soul of Masaki. You have passed my test. You are ready for Bankai. Remember Indra nothing ever truly dies for us. We can always use anything we have seen and give it life whenever we want. The world outside may be heaven for others and hell for some. But we have the ability to create heaven and hell for everyone. My bankai is dangerous to the world so listen carefully…." Kagetsu began narrating the effects of the bankai and the first lessons began.

**Author's Note: **

**A very short life for Masaki... Poor woman but Indra knew from the start Kagetsu was testing him to see whether he had the ability to trust in his powers. I mean if Indra held on to Masaki in soul society it would be like he had no trust in his ability to copy and preserve the souls of every person he meets. He could give life to Masaki anytime he wants as her copy is preserved in the inner world. A little bit twisted but it helps Indra in the long run as he do not have to worry about anyone taking her a hostage. **

**Misaki is my own creation in the story. She will be needed in the future and you saw a little bit of Mokuton from Naruto as well with her zanpakuto. I always wanted to bring that in a fic as it is my favorite blood line limit in Naruto. **

**If any of you have any ideas about the Bankai pleae review or PM me.**


	8. A key

**SOUL SOCIETY**

Toshiro put the last piece of paper on the side of his table and bound the stack of papers together with a twine and later put a seal using wax on the knot so as to recognize the squad 10 symbol. With a satisfied sigh Toshiro sat back in his chair and smiled in triumph. Finally after days of hard work he was able to put a stop to those infernal demons that were piling up like a mountain on his table. The credit was not solely in his name. With that thought he looked to his side and observed his third seat who was diligently arranging all the completed paperwork into clearly identifiable files to keep it safe in the record room of squad 10. He looked to the opposite side and found his lieutenant fast asleep on the couch.

"Thank you for helping me with all this work Kurosaki san. You may take the rest of the day off." Toshiro offered to his third seat

"Thank you, captain." Indra thanked him and left his office

"You can stop your acting Matsumoto." Toshiro looked at his lieutenant with a frown

"How did you know I was faking it?" Matsumoto asked with a pout as she sat up

"You are very easy to read and besides I know you enough to recognize that much. The question is why are you doing this?" Toshiro asked with a raised eyebrow

"Now that Kurosaki Kun thinks I am sleeping here I can discreetly follow him." Matsumoto stood up from the couch

"Why are you following him?" Toshiro asked confused

"You should know that Anai san and Kurosaki Kun are very chummy now and they both seem to disappear from the squad barracks for an extended period of time." Rangiku said

"So you want to know where they are going. I did not take you for a stalker Matsumoto." Toshiro said

"I already know they are going to Rukongai. I just need to find out what they are doing over there." Rangiku said

"They might be going there because of your prying eyes." Toshiro snorted

"I know they have visited several districts repeatedly. But I don't know what they are doing. Don't you find it a little suspicious captain?" Rangiku asked

"Are you sure they visited multiple districts repeatedly." Toshiro asked

"Yes captain." Rangiku answered

"Tell them both to report before me once they are back. I will ask them myself." Toshiro said as he left the office

**XXXXXX**

As the sun was setting Indra and Misaki found themselves standing before Toshiro in his office.

"I don't like to interfere in personal matters but the central 46 is looking on the thirteen court guard squads because of Rukia Kuchiki's disappearance. So I have to ensure there are no incidents that can draw the ire of our governing body. What were you both doing in Rukongai." Toshiro asked

Indra and Misaki looked at each other hesitantly.

"I don't want you to lie to me. You both have repeatedly visited many numbers of districts of Rukongai over the many months. I need a clear answer because the situation demands it." Toshiro said

"Misaki has nothing to do with this. I asked for her help to find someone for me in the Rukongai." Indra admitted

"Who were you looking for?" Toshiro asked

"We were looking for his mother, captain." Misaki informed

"Your mother…?" Toshiro looked at Indra

"I have some flashes of memories about my life in the human world. I remember I had a mother but after I arrived in soul society I have not seen her and I am pretty sure she died as well. That's why we were in Rukongai." Indra revealed

"You have memories of your past life?" Toshiro asked incredulously

"They are just snippets and flashes of images. I am slowly losing even that as years pass by. That's why I drew this…." Indra handed over a rolled scroll to Toshiro

The squad 10 captain opened the roll and saw the painting of a woman in it.

"You drew this yourself?" Toshiro asked surprised as he observed the well detailed drawing

"Since my memory is getting a little fuzzy I thought it would be better if I drew my mother's face." Indra shrugged lightly

"I understand your reason but for the time being I want both of you to stop going into Rukongai. At the very least postpone your search until Kuchiki Rukia is found." Toshiro ordered

"Yes captain." Indra and Misaki agreed

"You may take your leave and Misaki, I know you regularly help out the citizens of Rukongai with your salaries but I want you to stop that as well. As I said we are under scrutiny by the central 46 and it would be better if we keep a low profile." Toshiro dismissed them

Indra and Misaki left the office and went straight to the training grounds.

"Of course the bloody nobles always jump in from somewhere and ruin everything and this time it is pet dog, Rukia Kuchiki." Misaki complained angrily after she made sure they were alone

"You really hate the noble houses of Soul society don't you?" Indra asked

"I do hate them with a passion. Don't tell me you are also one of those goody two shoes that ask to forget and forgive for no good reason." Misaki asked with revulsion

"Far from it actually…. I don't like the noble families either but let me ask you this. Do you like the soul king?" Indra asked as he looked at the moon

Misaki was silent for some time and then cautiously replied.

"The soul king is the linchpin that holds the entire spiritual world in balance. So he is necessary and vital for our existence. That said, I don't like his decision to hand over the running of soul society to a bunch of noble families. Why are you asking me this?" Misaki asked

"Let me tell you a story then. Once upon a time there lived a god who was benevolent and wise. The god ruled over a vast world and under his rule the world remained in peace. There was no hunger, crime, poverty, despair and most importantly there was no death. It was a perfect world in all sense but something happens that disturbed the peace and threatened the very existence of this wonderful world. With no other choice the god decides to split the world into different pieces. To ensure the people living under his rule to be safe he empowered certain people so as to be the protectors of his creations." Indra paused and looked at Misaki to make sure he had her attention

"What happened?" Misaki asked in interest

"As time passed the god entrusted more and more duties to the new protectors. The god saw them as his own children and trusted them too much but the protectors became too greedy. They wanted more power and desired to rule all of creation so they used the very powers that were gifted by the god to strike him down. The god never expected his precious children to betray him so he fell for the trap. The protectors knew that the god is needed to hold up the world and they couldn't kill him as he was an immortal being. So they did the next best thing. They cut up the gods limbs and scattered those body parts across the world and sealed the god forever in a crystal chamber. The god was conscious about what was happening around him but he could not fully awaken himself as he was weak after the betrayal.

The god was forced to watch the atrocities the so called protectors unleashed upon the rest of creation. So with his considerable powers he stored over the millennia he created a son to release him from his sorry state and restore order to the world. The son born to him was so powerful that within years he managed to create a group of extraordinary beings around him to challenge the so called protectors. Like the god his son also had the power to empower other beings. This son of god led an army that he enhanced by his own power against the protectors and tried to conquer Soul Society. By then the protectors were already too powerful and had a large and powerful army of their own. The son of god was defeated in battle and his army was cut down without any mercy. The same fate befall the son as the protectors sealed the son of god in a separate dimension where not even light could penetrate. To this day the god and his son remain sealed while the so called protectors rule the world as we know it." Indra finished the tale

"Then the god in this story is the Soul King." Misaki inquired

"Indeed." Indra agreed

"Then are you the son of Reio." Misaki asked with a little fear

"I did say that the son of Reio is sealed away in a domain Misa chan. No, I am not the son of Reio but I am the reckoning. For every rise there must be a fall. I am the means through which the fall of the corrupt Shinigami is coming. I am here to restore order to chaos. The powerful shall fall from grace and the powerless shall be empowered. This is inevitable and must happen to restore heaven in this place and for that I need your help. Will you help me?" Index asked as he turned to face Misaki

"You yourself said that you plan to bring down the Shinigami. Then why are you asking for the help of a Shinigami?" Misaki asked

"I am not here to exterminate the entire Shinigami. I am here to save the Shinigami and the souls of Rukongai from the tyranny and greed of some of the Shinigami. Don't you want to see poverty and crime to pass from Rukongai. Don't you desire peace for these people who suffer under the crushing weight of despair? Don't you yearn for the freedom of those who are powerless and helpless? I can bring that change and bring about the world the Reio envisioned if you help me. Together we can rebuild the world and bring about real heaven." Indra put his hand on Misaki's shoulder and squeezed lightly

"How do I know you are speaking the truth?" Misaki asked confused by everything

Indra pulled Misaki close to him and placed his hands on her hips.

"My intentions are pure like your heart. If you are with me then I am sure the world I bring about will be just and perfect. I know this because I know your heart." Indra pressed a light kiss on her lips and looked into her eyes. After some time they separated and Indra had a small smile on his face.

Misaki's eyes widened with shock but there was a spark of love in them and she closed the gap between them this time. They remained like that for some time until the need to breathe separated them. Misaki placed her head against Indra's heart and listened to rhythm of his heartbeat. She felt him embrace her and his hand seems to glide through her long black hair.

"Whatever you do just promise me one thing." Misaki looked into his eyes

"Promise me that you will never liee to me." She requested

"You have my word Misa chan. I will never lie to you." Indra placed a small peck on her forehead. She smiled and embraced him more tightly. They stood like that for some time enjoying the presence of each other.

"So what is the plan and what is my role in it?" Misaki asked after sometime

"The plan is not ready but I need your help in a very different matter." Indra smirked looking at the moon

"How may I help?" Misaki asked as she raised her head to look into his eyes

"You are my queen so I will require you to remove a very serious threat to your king. I want you to steal something from a noble house." Indra cupped her cheeks and smiled

"What is this thing that can threaten you?" Misaki asked

Indra pressed a kiss next to her earlobe and began to whisper into her about her target. Misaki's eyes widened as she had never heard of such a thing existing in soul society and the cruel history behind it. She looked at her lover with resolve and nodded firmly showing her agreement.

"To execute such a daring mission you need to be more powerful and that's why I will be training you from now on in Kido and all other shinigami arts. If you prove to be able to master your powers then I will enhance you with a gift of my own. The queen must be equal or at least close in power to the king in the new world." Indra smiled and took a stance with his Zanpakuto.

"Let's begin…" Indra and Misaki disappeared in a flash step and the sounds of clashing swords filled the training grounds

**KARAKURA TOWN**

Ichigo stood before the two headstones that marked the graves of his mother and brother. He placed a fresh set of flowers on both graves. He closed his eyes and thought about the memories he had of these two most important people that influenced him in his life. Halfway through his thoughts shifted to the recent happenings in his life which immediately made him suspect the cause of death of his mother and brother on that rainy day.

His life changed when he was forced to become a shinigami to protect his family from the hollows. He became indebted to Kuchiki Rukia as she was the reason his family survived that day by transferring her powers to him and turning him into a shinigami. The only problem was that he had to her duties as a shinigami until her powers returned. Rukia then joined the same school he studied in and that too in his own class so as to be near him to deal with any hollows quickly. From that day onwards Ichigo had to face different hollows on different occasions with a sword as tall as his body. He managed to save Orihime Inoue who was a classmate from a hollow who turned out to be her brother that died when she was a little girl. Then there was that hollow Shrieker who was dragged into hell for his crimes.

All these fights with hollows made him think there was perhaps more to the story behind his mother's and brother's death.

"Is that your mother and brother, Ichigo?" a female voice asked from his back

"Yeah... I was nine when they died." Ichigo looked at the smaller grave

"What happened?" Rukia asked as she stood next to him

"The three of us were walking along the riverside next to the park and I saw a girl jump into the river or at least I thought I did. I ran towards the spot but I couldn't find anyone and the next thing I know was being taken down by mother and I lost consciousness. When I woke up my mother and brother were dead and I was covered in their blood. Later when I grew up I realized what I saw was perhaps a soul or ghost." Ichigo monotonously said

"Ichigo if you were seeing souls as early as that age then perhaps it was an hollow attack." Rukia lightly said

"I had that same thought but that will not explain how that soul just appeared on the riverside." Ichigo asked

"There is a hollow that has the ability to project the souls of its victims to lure the prey it is targeting. That hollow was notorious for its ability to escape the shinigami. Unfortunately we have not heard of the hollow for some years." Rukia looked at Ichigo who stood up

"What was that hollows name." Ichigo asked

"Its name was Grand Fisher." Rukia answered

She heard the sound of the rest of Kurosaki family approaching so she immediately hid herself behind a row of trees so as to give the family some privacy.

After some time, Ichigo walked up to where she was hiding with a serious look on his face.

"Are your powers returning Rukia." Ichigo asked

"Not yet but soon it will return." Rukia replied

"Even if your power returns allow me to be shinigami a little longer. I want to be stronger so as to protect my family and other souls and one day I will find the hollow that took my mother and brother and destroy it." Ichigo looked at her with a resolve that she had never seen on his face. She nodded and they both went back to the Kurosaki house and Ichigo was back to normal as he began to argue with Kon over some silly things.

**SOUL SOCIETY**

Misaki sat down exhausted in the shade of a tree from the moonlight after their intense training session. Indra sat next to her and handed her a bottle of water. She greedily drank it as she was thirsty.

"Your Zanpakuto is very unique Misaki. It speaks a lot about your character." Indra commented

"I don't understand."Misaki asked

"Your Zanpakuto has the ability to manipulate the environment. But the roots, flowers and trees that spring up when you use your shikai is essentially because you inserted a portion of your reitsu into the ground. That means your reitsu has a special property that is different and unique to yourself." Indra said

"Captain Hitsugaya has the ability to summon a ice dragon inn his shikai. His reitsu sometimes even reflect intense cold. I hardly think I am the only person that is special, Indra." Misaki snorted

"Toshiro Hitsugaya has great power but your power is at another level. Consider you are in a desert and you used your shikai for combat. Do you think your powers will be able to awaken the plants in the desert?" Indra asked

"I suppose, maybe." Misaki looked confused

"There is no need for any confusion Misaki. You will be able to do it because as I said you are not essentially manipulating the plants and trees when you unleash your shikai. Your shikai is literally control all life under the ground. In simple terms you are manipulating the very essence of life and when you use your power with this realization you can master your shikai and then start Bankai training." Indra explained

"I never thought about it like that. I always thought **Shizen no megami** was controlling the trees and plants. How did you realize what my power was?" Misaki asked in wonder

"When I heard that you were helping the poor in Rukongai with your salary everything immediately clicked in my mind about your power." Indra said

"I don't give my salary away just like that. I merely use a portion of it to help some people to start some business there." Misaki shrugged

"You are beautiful in many ways Misa chan and you can count on my help as well. I don't usually use much of my salary for anything other than food." Indra took her hand and squeezed lightly showing his support.

"I appreciate it. So tell me, how goes your Bankai training?" Misaki asked

Indra concentrated and **Kagetsu **appeared in front of them startling Misaki.

"This is the first time we are meeting. My name is Kagetsu." The Zanpakuto introduced himself to Misaki

"Hi." Misaki waved back at the spirit in greeting as she had yet to recover from the surprise

"As you can see I can summon him out of my inner world but to obtain my Bankai he has a condition." Indra said

"What's that?" Misaki asked

"My Bankai has a unique nature Misaki. Unlike other Zanpakutos I need someone other than my wielder for the Bankai to work." **Kagetsu **said

"I don't understand. How can someone else activate your Bankai?" Misaki asked

"I don't need anyone to activate but rather I need someone that can be trusted to hold a special key and that person is you." Kagetsu replied pointing at Misaki

"Key, what key?" Misaki asked

Indra and **Kagetsu **looked at each other for some time and Indra nodded.

"The key is a focal point to the reality we are living in and the key must be with someone that Indra trust to summon my Bankai into the real world." **Kagetsu** explained

"You consider me the person that you trust most?" Misaki asked as she looked at Indra

"I don't know why but I think I can trust you." Indra said as he brought her hands to his lips and pressed a kiss on her fingers

"So, will you accept the key?" **Kagetsu **asked

"Yes." Misaki said with a smile

Kagetsu raised his hand and reishi condensed on his right hand and began to take the form of a silver white key.

"**Shinjitsu no kagi** (Key of Truth)" Kagetsu gave the key to Indra

Indra took the key from his Zanpakuto and pressed the key to Misaki's heart. With a bright light the key sunk into her body.

"What? Where did it go?" Misaki asked

"The key is in your inner world. The key will ensure you will not be affected by my Bankai." Indra said

"What kind of Bankai is this?" Misaki asked curiously

"Let's just say that my Bankai is a wide area affecting one." Kagatsu said as he began to dissolve into reishi and entered back into Indra's inner world.

Misaki blinked at the spot where the Zanpakuto occupied before with confusion.

"Don't mind him. He is rude like that sometimes. Let's go and take a shower and I am sure you are hungry as well." Indra helped Misaki stand up and together they returned back to their squad quarters. The moon shined brightly in the sky as the sole witness to this exchange.


	9. Mission gone wrong

**SOUL SOCIETY**

Indra looked at the four-person squad that assembled before him in quick order.

"There has been a hollow incursion in East Rukongai. More specifically it is the district number 76 named Sabitsura were you four will be going. This is a joint mission with squad 11." As he said that there were few groans from his colleagues

"I know they are a rowdy bunch but we have to follow orders. Your primary mission is to locate the hollows and track their movements. All you have to do is to point out the hollows to the squad 11 members. Purifying the hollows is secondary to your group. Am I clear?" Indra asked

"Yes sir" they replied in sync

"Good. Misaki will lead the group. Keep your senses open and don't respond to any provocations from the squad 11 members. Do your job and return back safely. You may go now. Squad 11 will wait by the east gate." Indra dismissed them. He watched as Misaki lead the others out of the room. He felt their spiritual energy move far away rapidly as he was concentrating on tracking Misaki.

"You can leave her alone now." Kagetsu said as he appeared by his side

"Kagetsu. Why are you here?" Indra asked in surprise

"Nowadays you are very much in a state of constant flux. Sometimes you are pinning after Misaki and sometimes your ambition overtakes her presence. You must find a balance soon enough." Kagetsu replied as he carefully sat on the table.

"You like her. In some ways you are seeing a reflection of yourself in her from your childhood. That makes it easy for you to relate to her in a very intimate way than anyone else. I don't condemn such a relationship but I am merely reminding you to never take your eye off the goal." Kagetsu said

"I haven't taken my eye off the goal Kagetsu." Indra heatedly replied

"Really. Then why have you stopped in mastering your bankai. I have not seen you in your inner world to practice your bankai." Kagetsu pointed out

"Well, I was training Misaki at that time." Indra reminded Kagetsu

"Exactly. You have sacrificed your time to make sure she is becoming powerful enough for the coming conflicts. You are prioritising her protection instead of your growth." Kagetsu argued

"What do you want me to do? Stop training her? Is that it?" Indra asked

"No. I don't care whether you train her or not. I want you to focus more on your powers. You should know what we are up against. The enemies you are about to face are too dangerous and more experienced. Your only advantage is your power. Don't throw it all away for a girl. It won't matter whether you love each other. If you don't have the power to protect her then what good are you." Kagetsu said and abruptly disappeared back into the inner world

Indra sighed in frustration. He knew what Kagetsu said was right. But he could not help himself to not love Misaki. As Kagetsu said he sometimes saw a reflection of himself in her. In his first life, he was like her as he was born in a village and lived on the streets. The difference was he, later on, used his gifts to kill people while she is using her position and power to help people without expecting anything back. The fact that she does not make her activities public or does not make others rope into helping the poor especially attracted him. She does these things by herself and at the same time never bothers about what others think about her activities. It took a certain strength to do things she does. Misaki may lack spiritual power but her convictions are very strong. It was this character that attracted him and pushed him to make sure she was powerful enough in terms of spiritual pressure as well.

But Kagetsu was also right. Indra knew he was about to engage in battle with very powerful beings like Yhwach in the future. To survive and even win against such adversaries he needed power. His Bankai was strong but the problem was it was very dangerous to use for a long period of time and it required extreme precision in the use of spirit energy. Considering all these factors the need for daily training was essential to master his Bankai. He decided he will be speaking with Misaki once she returned from the mission. She is a big girl and in fact, he was sure she would agree with him in this matter. With that thought, he went back to the work he was doing and that was checking the supply stocks of the division.

**XXXXXX**

Misaki found herself cursing her captain for taking up this joint mission with squad 11. They were a rowdy bunch and it was difficult to track the hollows with constant snide comments from these fools. At least in that regard, she could share all the insults with the other three members of her squad.

"Nagai San, a group of hollows have managed to pin down some of the squad 11 men." One of her colleagues reported

"Where?" she asked

"A little further north from here. Some of them were bleeding quite heavily." Another team member said

"Both of you stay with that group and provide assistance. We will handle things here." Misaki ordered and they both ran towards north direction

"Nagai San, we have company." The one nearby pointed out

Misaki saw a group of hollows approaching them fast and she raised her palm facing the hollows.

**"Hadou 31: Shakkaho"**

A red ball of energy gathered on her open palm and with a thought, she released it and the ball struck a hollow's face which shattered its mask. Three other hollows tried to flank them but some of the squad 11 members fell upon these three and began to battle them.

"Go help the others. I got this." Misaki shouted and she felt her fellow squad member depart

Misaki saw a hollow managed to push down a shinigami and was about to bite off his head. She pointed her finger at the hollow.

**"Hadou 4: Bayakuri (White/Pale Lightning)"**

A bolt of white lightning from her fingertip struck the hollow right on its head. The bolt pierced through the hollow killing it instantly.

"Hey, you coward. Don't kill our prey with your magic tricks. Fight them as true warriors will you good for nothing spineless cowards." The Shinigami she saved shouted back

Misaki didn't mind the insult and concentrated on her mission. Her focus was lifted as she heard a huge crash further north. She decided to check what happened and disappeared in a flash step. When she arrived she saw a large number of hollows that had destroyed a modest wooden house and was feasting upon several fallen Shinigami. She saw the hollows look at her with a hungry look and one among them jumped at her.

She held her Zanpakuto in a reverse grip and activated her Shikai.

**"Rejuvenate, Shizen no megami (Nature Goddess)"**

Her Zanpakuto glowed a bright green and began to drip a green liquid into the ground. She raised her spiritual pressure and concentrated on the ground.

**"Jukai Kotan (Deep Forest Emergence)"**

Huge trees and thick roots began to grow around the hollows trapping them inside. The roots began to hold them down while sharp branches of the newly grown trees began to spear into the sides of hollows making them howl in pain.

Suddenly in a blink of her eye, the roots that were holding the hollows down were cut down. She looked to her side and her eyes widened as she saw Zaraki Kenpachi, the captain of squad 11. He was standing there with a maniacal look. A jolt of fear passed through her spine as she felt the killing intent radiating off him in waves.

Her attention shifted from the captain as she saw one of her teammates crawling out of the thick roots with heavy injuries. She flash stepped before him and blocked a hollow that we about to bite him with a shield that sprung upon her palm.

**"Bakudou 39: Arc Shield (Enkosen)"**

Unfortunately for Misaki, she had the worst timing as it was this exact moment Zaraki slashed his sword upon the hollows and released a fraction of his spirit energy. Misaki felt a portion of that attack clip on her shoulder. From her collarbone to her shoulder blade a huge cut opened up separating her bones and muscles with a thick gap. She screamed in pain as her back split open and blood spilt down from the wound. She felt as if her right hand was separated from her body and she lost consciousness and fell sideways into the ground. Her Zanpakuto slipped from her hand and reverted back to its base form.

Zaraki scratched his head at this turn of events and scoffed.

"This is why I don't like to fight among weaklings. They are so fragile Yachiru." He pointed at the downed girl and shrugged. The pink-haired girl on his head pouted at the downed form as if this was all Misaki's fault.

He looked at the rushing hollows with boredom and a single swing of his sword separated their bodies into several pieces.

Indra became alarmed when he felt the spiritual pressure of Misaki began to rapidly plummet at an alarming rate. He stood up from his office and immediately flash stepped away to East Rukongai.

**XXXXX**

Kenpachi Zaraki finished off the last hollow with a careless swing of his sword. The rest of his squad members arrived near him. One of the unharmed squad 10 members saw his downed members on the ground and immediately went near them. Just as he was about to check his two teammates Indra arrived by his side in a flash step startling the guy and immediately pressed his hand on Misaki's wound and a green glow enveloped his palm starting the healing kidou.

"What happened?" India asked

"I don't know Kurosaki San. She was like this when I arrived. We lost two of our men and Miroku San is also severely injured." The squad member pointed out

"This does not look like a hollow attack. This is caused by a sword." Indra said out loud and looked at the assembled squad 11 members one by one until his gaze fell on Kenpachi Zaraki and his glare intensified

"What are you looking at? The girl got in my way and this is what happens when weaklings get in a fight." Zaraki mocked

"You spilled her blood?" Indra asked as his eyes intensified

"I did. What are you going to...?" Zaraki couldn't finish the sentence as blood spilt from his body. Zaraki looked incredulously at his left shoulder as a deep gouge was cut into it oozing blood. His eyes found crystal blue ones that were starting at him directly at arms length without a shred of fear.

Zaraki swiped his blade aiming for the boy's neck but only found air while he felt a blade cut into his back from his shoulder to hip.

"Captain….?" One of his squad members murmured in fear

Zaraki was shaking and soon burst out into maniacal laughter and turned around to look at the person who managed to cut him.

"It has been years since I felt like this. This feeling of my blood flowing out into the world. Who are you boy?" Zaraki asked with a crazy smile

"There is no need for you to know my name. All you have to do is not to blink." Indra replied and vanished in a flash step and another cut appeared on Zaraki in his chest spilling blood

Zaraki laughed in joy and swung his blade and caught Indra's blade in a deadlock as they both tried to overpower each other. A sick yellow outline appeared around Zaraki as his spiritual pressure began to manifest around the area bringing most of the shinigami down to their knees. The effect was further amplified when a dark blue aura enveloped Indra as well as his own spiritual pressure began to clash with Zaraki. The ground they stood upon shattered under their power output. They disengaged from the deadlock and moved away from each other.

"Hey, Yachiru. Who is this guy?" Zaraki asked his chibi lieutenant

"This is Indra kun. He is a seated officer in squad 10. He can play well with you Kenni." Yachiru clapped her hands in excitement as she was safely watching the battle from the top of one of the shinigami's head

"Indra huh. I will remember that name. Now let's have some fun." Zaraki screamed as he rushed at Indra with his spirit energy raising each step on the way.

Their blades clashed with a clang and their spirit energy clashed violently which tore up the ground. Kenpachi began to hack and slice at Indra, each attack becoming increasingly powerful. Indra was no slouch as he expertly defended each strike with extreme precision. Zaraki pushed with his blade and managed to push back Indra a small distance. Zaraki raised his sword and struck an overhead blow.

Indra disappeared in flash step and appeared right behind Zaraki. With a smooth motion, he delivered two large slashes at Zaraki's back. He once again disappeared in a flash step as Zaraki tried to take his head off with a quick slash.

"This is exciting. I didn't know someone like you was here in soul society all along. Now I can go all out." With that said, Zaraki pulled out the eye patch on his face and a huge storm of spirit energy enveloped the captain of squad 11.

East Rukongai shook by the full might of Zaraki's spirit energy. Not to be outdone Indra also unleashed his spirit energy and became bathed in a blue beam of power. With a war cry both of them clashed which blew away the meagre soft constructs around them and uprooted the trees.

**XXXXXX**

Captain Kyoraku was sitting peacefully in his with his long time friend Jushiro Ukitake who was the captain of squad 13.

"Come on Ukitake. Have another sake and your coughing will go away." Kyoraku lightly teased his friend by serving another cup.

The sake fell from his hand as they felt a tremendous spiritual pressure take hold of their positions.

"What is this spiritual pressure? The killing intent is enormous?" Ukitaje wondered out loud as he looked at Kyoraku

"I can identify Kenpachi but there is another one. Let's check-up." Kyouraku said as he lost his playful nature. Ukitake also stood up and together they disappeared in a flash step

**XXXXX**

Toshiro was a happy guy nowadays. With most of the division's paperwork being filed properly and in time, he had some free time which Toshiro used to sometimes train or spend time with Momo. Right now he was in an isolated area where his spiritual pressure would not become a bother for anybody else.

Suddenly his senses picked up a gigantic wave of spirit energy from East Rukongai. It didn't take him much time to realize who it belonged to. As soon as that information filtered into his brain he immediately started moving towards the source of energy.

**XXXXX**

Gin looked at the huge storm of energy brewing far in Rukongai with a wide smile. He turned to look at Captain Aizen and Captain Tosen.

"Captain Aizen, it seems our mutual friend is playing with our resident Kenpachi." Gin observed

"Let him play with the brute. He is playing his role smoothly." Tosen commented

"Indeed. He is taking the attention of other captains away establishing himself which is exactly what I told him to do. The plan is nearly complete as you very well know Gin."Aizen said as he subtly reminded them of the order that central 46 has issued regarding the capture of Rukia Kuchiki

"Seems like things are going according to your designs captain Aizen. So should we do away with the central 46 now?" Gin looked at Aizen

"What do you think Kaname?" Aizen looked at Tosen

"The time to deliver justice is here lord Aizen." Tosen commented

"In that case let's thank our friend Indra for this wonderful distraction and pay a visit and I believe the present central 46 session is going to be very bloody." Aizen smirked cruelly as he stood up followed by Gin and Tosen. They vanished in a flash step moving rapidly to their destination.

**XXXXXX**

Kyoraku and Ukitake met up with Toshiro half way through their journey.

"Captain Hitsugaya. Do you know who the other guy is?" Ukitake asked as they jointly vanished in a flash step

"He is Kurosaki Indra. He is from my division." Toshiro admitted

"What happened?" Kyoraku asked

"I know there was a joint mission with squad 11. Other than that I have no idea. We will soon find out, I hope." Toshiro replied and soon they arrived at the battlefield which was a total mess.

They arrived just in time to see Kenpachi strike Indra with full burnt of his spiritual energy which enveloped Indra in high explosion.

"Captain Zaraki, stop this at once. What are you doing? You have decimated a large area with your destructive antics." Ukitake

"Why are you even attacking a member of squad 10?" Kyoraku asked

"What the hell are you even doing here? I distinctly remember there was no suggestion of your involvement when I approved this mission." Toshiro growled

"It was boring to stay in the squad and look at all the fun here. The blue-eyed guy was hurt his little girlfriend was injured by me. Let's see whether he has the power to stand against me." Zaraki shouted as he raised his spiritual pressure again.

Toshiro was about to release his Zanpakuto but Kyoraku stopped him. He found Kyoraku looking intently at the dust cloud that surrounded where Indra was standing.

The dust cloud parted away by swing of Indra's sword. There were few scratches on his uniform but other than that there were no marks that he was under the onslaught of a powerful attack.

"Power to stand against you? No, I have the power to crush you." Indra replied hotly as he unleashed a large portion of his spirit energy. He raised his Zanpakuto and pointed at Zaraki.

**"Transcend, Kagetsu(Bright moon)"**

His Zanpakuto glowed brightly making everyone to shield their eyes. As the light died down they saw bright blue vein-like patterns spread across Indra's Zanpakuto glowing brightly.

"What is that light show? So your Zanpakuto's name is Kagetsu, huh." Zaraki asked in interest

"I would also like you to remember one more name..." Indra said as he disappeared in a flash step.

Zaraki raised his sword to block a swing from Indra who was suspended in mid-air who was exerting great pressure that made the ground crack under Zaraki's feet. Indra placed his left palm behind his Zanpakuto and smirked.

**"Getsuga Tenshou" **

A tremendous explosion consumed Zaraki. A spherical shaped blue energy consumed everything in the vicinity as it expanded and reduced everything around into fine dust. As the thunderous explosion died down everyone saw Zaraki on his knees barely holding himself up with the support of his blade. Indra appeared before him and kicked him away from the blade. Zaraki fell flat on his back exhausted and slowly lost his consciousness.

Indra walked closer to the downed captain and was about to stab Kagetsu through Zaraki's forehead but a voice stopped him.

"Stop what you are doing Kurosaki. If he has injured one of our own there are laws that will punish him. You do not have the authority to judge or punish him." Toshiro said firmly

Indra stopped himself and dismissed his Shikai.

"Take Misaki and others to squad 4. I will deal with this." Toshiro said

Indra nodded briefly and took Misaki in his arms and vanished in a flash step.

"Yama Jii is not going to be happy with everything that is going on." Kyoraku said

"What happened?" Toshiro asked

"Central 46 has ordered to hunt down Rukia Kuchiki and bring her to Soul Society immediately." Kyoraku said

"Has she been found?" Toshiro asked curiously

"Indeed. She is in Karakura Town and we suspect she has transferred her powers to a human boy." Ukitake said sadly

"What? Why did she do that?" Toshiro asked incredulously

"That's what I would also like to find out. Anyways first, let's deal with the problem at hand." Kyoraku said as he looked at the downed body of Zaraki Kenpachi and his equally dishevelled squad.

Still, something bugged Ukitake of the attack Indra used. He was sure he was somehow familiar with that but he couldn't quickly formulate any connections and in the heat of things that happened, he forgot about it entirely. They began to organise the other Shinigami to transport all injured out of Rukongai and it was then Toshiro found out two of his squad members we're dead and another was close to dying.

No more joint missions with squad 11, Toshiro decided.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**please don't consider this as a rant but I have to say this. If anyone don't like the way this story is going that's ok. I can understand each one of us has different tastes but don't take that as an excuse to take out your frustration on me. The recent negative reviews almost feel like physical blows rather than observations.**

**Why can't the SI fall in love? Is he forbidden from that? He cannot relate to the Kurosaki family because he is an adult in a small body when he was born. He is not going to be all mushy suddenly.**

**Misaki, on the other hand, is different. He can relate to her somewhat as he had similar childhood like hers. At first, he chose to be in a relationship with her so as to use that as a cover. But as he closely mingles with her he is being influenced by her character. It's natural.**

**If you guys were expecting a total dark villain then I am sorry. No can do. Total Villainism is boring and will mostly end in disaster.**

**Indra's ambition is to rule not to destroy like some are thinking. There is a great difference between the two. Like Aizen and Yhwach. Before Yhwach absorbed Soul King he was all like 'I am going to destroy the world and start from scratch.'**

**Aizen, on the other hand, was like'I am too powerful and I need a rival friend to balance me so that I can rule with stability as a rival will keep me in check' Along the way Aizen seems to lose that attitude and fell into the trap of absolute Power. That made him irrational. Until Aizen had his first transformation using the Hogyoku I can say he was the best. After that, the guy was a disaster.**

**So I am balancing Indra a little early and set his priorities straight. **


	10. An untimely death

**SOUL SOCIETY**

Toshiro found Indra sitting nearby Misaki in Squad 4 ward.

"You haven't moved from her side for a long time, have you?" Toshiro asked

"She is slowly recovering. Thankfully she had no grave wounds. Her own spirit energy is rapidly restoring itself which is accelerating the healing." Indra commented still looking at a sleeping Misaki

"That's good. You have been summoned by the head captain along with captain Zaraki." Toshiro informed

"Right now?" Indra asked as he turned to look at Toshiro.

"Yes. It has been one day. I was surprised he didn't call you early. Perhaps he was waiting for Zaraki to recover from his wounds." Toshiro mused

"Then I will not keep the head captain waiting." with that said Indra stood up and left the squad 4 wards straight to squad 1 barracks

**XXXXX**

Head Captain Yamamoto observed the bandage covered form of Zaraki Kenpachi keenly. He was happy a shinigami had the power and skill to defeat Kenpachi at his peak but he was also not happy with the lack of discipline from his subordinates. If shinigami do not exercise discipline how can they claim to be the force of balance in the world?

His attention turned to the door and he watched as his lieutenant Chojiro Sasakibe opened the door and allowed a young man to enter. He watched as the young Shinigami now briefly and stand tall waiting to be addressed. Strangely he felt no shift in the spiritual pressure of the young shinigami before him which was strange as that suggested a calm mind and an exceptional dominance over one's spiritual pressure.

"So you are Kurosaki Indra." Yamamoto asked

"Yes, Head Captain." Indra answered shortly

"What position do you hold in squad 10?" Yamamoto asked

"I hold the position of third seat." Indra answered

"Do you think you have the authority to judge and punish a captain of the 13 court guard squads?" Yamamoto asked

"No, head captain. But, I am responsible for my subordinates and anyone who brings them harm so long as they remain loyal to Soul Society is an enemy and they will be dealt with to the best of my abilities." Indra declared

"I see. Do you have anything to add captain Zaraki?" Yamamoto asked the captain of squad 11

"Leave the boy alone old man. We fought as warriors do. This is how squad 11 deals with any problems. He had a problem. with me and he fought me with everything he had. That's the end of it." Zaraki said in a lax manner

"The end of it...? I hardly think you can decide the end of this incident Captain Zaraki. You are henceforth banned from participating in any missions without my express permission. The fact that you have injured a member of squad 10 is shameful. If anything like this happens again consider your life forfeit." Yamamoto then turned to Indra and stared him down

"For once I am being lenient in punishing you as per the recommendation of your captain. I have been told that you excel in all branches of Kidou spells. You will serve in squad 4 for the next six months in your free time as a volunteer healer. We have other methods of punishment but considering your intentions I am being this much lenient. You may go." Yamamoto dismissed Indra

"As for you, we have much more to talk about Captain Zaraki." Yamamoto began to lecture about the importance of exercising self-control and what not making Zaraki's head spin.

**XXXX**

Indra let out a sigh of relief after he exited the squad 1 barracks. He vanished in flash step as he travelled to squad 10 barracks. On the way, he was wondering what happened to make him so emotional these days. He was usually a very logical person and he knew that attacking Zaraki no matter what would have brought unwanted attention in himself. So he was troubled by the knee jerk reaction he took that day. This had to be really explored and that pushed him to contact Kagetsu.

The moment he arrived he immediately entered his room and closed the door. Then he took a meditative pose and slowly immersed himself in his soul. When he opened his eyes he found himself on a giant rock that was floating in the sky. He was struck speechless as his world had completely changed in a span of several months. Huge trees now stood proud over the buildings that were now razed to the ground. Everything was so different and unreal that he felt this world was not his.

"Don't worry Indra. Your world is safe. This is just a manifestation of your love to me." a voice from behind him spoke

Indra turned around and found Misaki there with him.

"Misaki, what are you doing here? How are you here?" Indra asked confused

"As I said, you love me so much so that you have manifested me inside your inner world. If you doubt me ask Kagetsu here." Misaki pointed at the spirit who was standing far back. Indra approached him and forcefully turned him around.

"What is the meaning of this Kagetsu? Stop the tricks that you are playing and restore the world back to order. This world feels alien to me." Indra demanded

"I am not the one that changed this world. She did and you allowed her to do so." Kagetsu said in disinterest

"What? What are you talking about? How can Misaki change...?" Indra cut himself off as he came to a realization

"You are not Misaki. You are her zanpakuto, Shizen no megami (Nature Goddess)" Indra said as he turned around to face her

The Zanpakuto spirit smiled cruelly and her black shinigami garbs began to be replaced by a green armour leaving her shoulders bare.

"You are right. I am not Misaki. I am her Zanpakuto. I didn't want to meet you like this Indra. But still, maybe it is better that you are here as you can witness your love for Misaki will bring our two worlds together." Shizen no megami said with a bright smile

"What do you mean by bringing our two worlds together? I don't understand." Indra asked confused

"Let me explain. You must know I was very unhappy with how Misaki was attracted to you. I didn't like that one bit. I have kept her pure of any corruption influence all these years and suddenly despite my repeated warnings she felt something for you and it blossomed so fast into something that I could not take away. But over time I realised you were good for her in some ways. You helped and admired her like no one ever did. Slowly I was turning around to the fact that you were good for her. It was then you gifted her with the key. The key that gave me access to your inner world." Shizen no megami smirked

"Impossible. That was not the function of the key. It was to create a point of reference for my Bankai to activate and anyone that I gift the key becomes shielded from my Bankai." Indra argued

Shizen no megami laughed at his argument.

"I thought you were a brilliant person but you are failing my expectations Indra. You yourself said to Misaki my power is based on the manipulation of life energy. Then why do you think I can't manipulate the key that you left inside her inner world to my desire. It is highly arrogant if you to think that but I guess it comes with the darkness inside you Indra. When you gave the key to Misaki it was not because you loved her but it was to use her to enforce your Bankai in this reality. You didn't see anything in her other than a potential follower. I understood that when my power infiltrated your inner world. It was then I realized how despicable you are. From that moment on you were in my control. Behold my Bankai..." Shizen no megami let go of her sword into the ground and the sword dissolved upon contact

**"Kami no rengō (Divine Union)"**

Everything around him began to glow in a pale green colour and began to change into wooden constructs. Trees, flowers, streams, grass and son began to spread our across his inner world changing everything he knew.

"You were trying to turn her into a servant. The moment I understood this I wanted to destroy you. But Misaki loved you. You were her focal point in life. I couldn't ignore her desires and destroy you. So I decided to do what you tried to do to her. I will make you her servant. After today you will worship her. You will stand with her and support her through your life. You will protect her with every shred of your power. She will become the air that you breathe, and without her, you will die. You already felt a sample of that when you struck down that fool who injured Misaki. Her wish will be granted as both of you will live a long life loving each other but under my terms." Shizen no megami proclaimed with a smirk

"I see. So your bankai has the power to unite different aspects of the world together. That is impressive. I knew Misaki's power was special the moment I saw her activate it. But I never realized her power could influence the world in such a large scale. I am impressed." Indra said as he bowed his head shielding his eyes

Shizen no megami smiled in triumph at Indra's submission.

"It is good that you submit to me. I will purify your soul of the dark stain inside every living human. The taint that you carry to exploit the world and everything in it will be removed by myself. With your power joining me I will be able to cleanse the whole world of this taint. This is my purpose, Misaki's purpose." Shizen no megami boasted

"It is very funny you are believing yourself to be the master if this world. You should remember that this world belongs to me and I am good at it." Indra said as he looked straight in the eye of Shizen no megami.

Indra looked at Kagetsu and nodded. Kagetsu took out his sword and handed it over to Indra. He silently activated the shikai and stabbed the sword into the rock that they were standing. The green glow began to spread into the blade as well making Shizen no megami smile.

"See, even your zanpakuto is being converted. Soon you will be just an extension of Misaki. You will become her slave." Shizen no megami laughed cruelly

"That is a good dream you have. Let me ask you something. Have you seen a bright moon that shined in the sky? It is very majestic and divine isn't it?" Indra asked even as the green glow began to consume his fingers

"Yes the moon is divine but the earth is more beautiful." Shizen no megami proclaimed

"The moon looks very divine on one side but what of the other, the Dark Side..." Indra asked and immediately a black aura surrounded him completely that swept away the green glow from the blade

"Let me show you the power of darkness." Indra raised his sword and his blade became consumed by a dark flame. He stabbed the blade into the ground and said...

**"Kokushibyō (Black death)"**

The effect was instant as everything around them became consumed in a black glow. Shizen no megami found herself unable to move and all her powers became unresponsive.

"Don't waste your time in trying to break out of this. The black death like its name turns anything it touches completely dead. In this case, it is your power that black death has touched. You see it shares the property of vacuum. Vacuum means nothing and anything that the black death touches becomes empty. You tried to take away my inner world but it is your world that is going to disappear. A shinigami without an inner world is dead." Indra smirked

"No, please don't. You will kill Misaki. You love her, you cannot kill her." Shizen no megami begged

"Love is a strong word. I admit that she is fascinating but the moment she posed a threat to me is the moment her existence became irrelevant. This is goodbye." Indra said and everything around him and Kagetsu disappeared in the darkness

"Looks like we will have to rebuild everything again." Kagetsu said looking at the empty world

"Thankfully we have a very good memory." Indra smiled and handed over the sword to Kagetsu. They activated their Quincy powers and engaged their version of Almighty. The world around them began to get rebuilt brick by brick. They watched as the sky returned to its position. Then the ground below them began to get filled with large skyscrapers. The souls that Indra traced with his eyes began to get formed inside the buildings. Several large rocks began to form in the sky and floated there defying gravity.

"Home sweet home." Kagetsu said as he floated down and settled on top of a building

"It is a shame we lost Misaki. She could have been a valuable puppet for taking that zanpakuto away safely." Indra pointed out

"We can have another puppet later down the line. For now, let's play our role in Aizen's plan. Your brother is going to arrive in Soul Society soon enough. What's your plan?" Kagetsu asked

"Everything must happen in an organic way. There is no rush to see my dearly beloved twin and his friends. They will stumble upon me at some point. Right now I have to put on a sad face as my girlfriend is dying. Wish me luck." Indra said as he began to disappear

"Good luck." Kagetsu said as he watched his wielder disappear from the inner world

**XXXX**

Indra found himself back in his room. The black death would have already taken effect on Misaki but he didn't want to give away anything so he returned to his office and worked as usual for the rest of the day.

He was called to captain Hitsugaya's office by noon. As he entered the office he saw both Rangiku and Toshiro present.

"We are going to the squad 4 barracks. Do you have anything serious to do." Toshiro asked

"No captain." Indra replied

"Good. Then let's go." Toshiro said

The three of them went into squad 4 barracks and they found Misaki in an isolated room.

"What happened? Why is she in a separate room?" Indra asked a squad member

"Her reitsu levels are draining away at an unprecedented rate. We are maintaining her with artificially injecting reitsu into her. We don't know what has happened." the healer said

The three of them waited outside the room and even Unohana later came to personally diagnose. After several long hours, Unohana exited the room and greeted them with the bad news.

"I am sorry to say this but Nagai San will not live longer than tomorrow morning. Whatever happened to her has drained her spirit energy and is continuously draining her spirit energy. No matter what we couldn't identify what is causing this. I am afraid we are helpless at this stage." Unohana said sadly

"How long does she have?" Indra asked

"The most we can hold her is for two hours. I am truly sorry." Unohana said sadly.

Toshiro and Rangiku became struck speechless by the final verdict of Unohana that Misaki would not survive for more than two hours. In Toshiro's case, he was more enraged and sad than ever before as he had lost three members of his squad because if this disastrous mission. With a resolute expression, he turned to Indra.

"Kurosaki. If you challenge Zaraki for the position if Captaincy, you can kill him legally." Toshiro looked at Indra as he said this

"What will that achieve? It will not undo what has happened to Misaki. I don't want to tarnish her memory with an act of violence." Indra said as he turned to walk away

"Don't you want to stay with her Kurosaki?" Toshiro asked in surprise

"She had already told me everything I needed to know in a short time. All I can do is not to let her life become meaningless and that is by making sure her absence be felt to those who depended on her. I can do that much for her and I am sure she would be happy with that knowledge." Indra said as he disappeared from squad 4 barracks

"Rangiku, stay with Misaki San. I will keep an eye in Kurosaki. Despite his words, I don't know what he would do." Toshiro said as he also disappeared in a flash step

**XXXXX Sometime later XXXX**

Indra placed a bouquet of flowers on the grave of Misaki.

"Are you sure this is the place for her final resting place?" Rangiku asked as she observed the rundown place around her in Rukongai

"She came from this place and she was never ashamed of this fact. She felt more at home here than in Gotei 13. So it is fitting for her to return back home." Indra commented

"Perhaps you are right." Toshiro said as they stood near the grave

"Captain has there been any progress about Kuchiki san." Rangiku asked to break the silence

"Central 46 has issued orders to capture her. Kuchiki Byakuya and Abarai Renji has been tasked to apprehend the prisoner. The stealth force reports she is in Karakura town. I believe they are on their way as we speak." Toshiro replied and fell into a comfortable silence.

Soon Toshiro and Rangiku departed leaving Indra alone near the grave.

"Don't worry Misaki. I will put good use of the powers of your Zanpakuto. Sadly you flew too close to the sun and got burned." Indra whispered and he too vanished in a flash step

**XXXX KARAKURA TOWN XXXX**

Rukia Kuchiki cast one long look at the house of Kurosaki family. This has been her home for quite a few months and she felt a little pain in her heart to leave the safety if this house. She turned her back and walked away from the house. Each step she took dulled the pain slowly as she knew in her heart this was for the best. She knew this day would come eventually but she thought by then her powers would return. Unfortunately, that never happened and now she was forced to flee to ensure Ichigo's safety. She knew soul society would be aware of Ichigo's existence as they would hardly overlook the appearance of a Menos Grande in the living world. Ichigo's fight with the Menos Grande would have alerted the Gotei 13 and they would surely send someone to eliminate him as well as to bring her back so that she will face the punishment for illegally transferring powers to a human. This is the reason she ran away from the Kurosaki house hoping that whoever is sent after her will only concentrate on her and leave Ichigo alone.

After hours of running, she managed to cover a lot of distance from Ichigo's how and she left a sigh of relief. But that was short-lived as the Senkaimon appeared right before her and her eyes widened in alarm at the occupants inside the gateway.

"Renji, brother..." Rukia breathed in fright

"Hello, Rukia. I see you were running away. Why don't you come out of your little gigai and we can have a friendly chat." Renji mocked her

"You have caught me. We can now go and I will accept any punishment." Rukia said as she walked towards them

"We will go to soul society soon enough but first come out of your gigai." Renji ordered

Rukia looked uneasily at her old friend and her brother who had yet to speak up or even express any emotions.

"If you are not going to do this by yourself then you leave me with no choice." with that said Renji unsheathed his Zanpakuto and slashed across Rukia's left shoulder. Blood oozed out of the wound and ran along her hand.

"Look at yourself Rukia. You don't even have the spirit energy to evade my attacks. Where is that boy who stole your spirit energy?" Renji asked in anger

"Nobody stole anything from me Renji." Rukia started but she was cut off by a familiar sound

"Are these clowns bothering you Rukia?" Ichigo asked as he stared hard at the two Shinigami

"Ichigo! What are you doing here?" Rukia asked with a little heat

"You left without saying goodbye." Ichigo looked at her with a raised eyebrow

"You don't understand. This is dangerous. You shouldn't have followed me. Leave now." Rukia looked seriously at Ichigo

"So this is the boy you transferred your powers to. He looks weak." Renji cockily said

"Squad 12 reports the boy was able to wound and repel a Menos Grande." Byakuya spoke up

"No way. This guy looks too weak for that to happen but I will thank you, orange-haired freak. You just made our job a whole lot easier by revealing yourself. Now we can finish you off and return back with the prisoner." Renji boasted

"Then let's find out whether I am weak or not." Ichigo rushed at Renji with his sword and Renji reciprocated and thus their duel began.

Rukia stood by the side watching the conflict between her two friends. Ichigo surprised her by holding his own against a more trained opponent like Renji. Even after Renji activated his Zanpakuto Ichigo was still in the fight until her brother stepped in and delivered the final blow. It was over in a blink. She watched with a pained heart as Ichigo fell down on the ground bleeding heavily from the strike of her brother. The sword that Ichigo carried lay broken on the ground. Rukia teared up as she realised one more life has been lost because of her.

She watched her brother walked towards her in a poised manner with a cold look.

"Come. Your judgement awaits you in Soul Society." Byakuya coldly said

Rukia's eyes widened as her brother was forced to stop by Ichigo holding on to his leg from behind. She saw her brother's expression change and she immediately intervened before it could turn bloody. She kicked away Ichigo's hand harshly.

"How dare you touch my brother. Your powers have already been broken and if you somehow manage to hold on to your life live it like a normal human. Forget you ever met me and don't ever even think about journeying to soul society. If you survive, live the rest of your life with your family." Rukia said and turned her back and followed her brother and Renji into Soul Society. Before the senkaimon closed Rukia cast one last look at Ichigo and saw him fall unconscious.

As soon as they stepped into Soul Society Byakuya turned to Renji.

"Secure the prisoner in a cell under strong barriers. We shall hold her until the verdict from Central 46 regarding her fate." Byakuya ordered

"Yes, captain." Renji said as he led Rukia to a holding cell in squad 6

**XXXX**

A man with a bowl hat and a black cat observed the bleeding form of Ichigo. Soon they were joined by the resident Quincy, Ishida Uryu. Seeing the bleeding form of Ichigo, Ishida rushed to his side and tried to stem the bleeding.

"What happened?" Ishida asked

"Kurosaki San had a disagreement with the shinigami of soul society. It seems miss Kuchiki has been taken prisoner by them and our resident shinigami tried to stop them. It seems he failed." Urahara said

"Don't just stand there. Help him up." Ishida frowned at the shady shopkeeper

"Since you asked so nicely..." Urahara helped to carry Ichigo and they left towards his shop.

The black cat sitting on Urahara's shoulder looked at the blood that still spread out on the street. The cat knew this was the beginning of the bloodshed. Aizen had made his move and it was now their turn to play. She couldn't wait to pay back for what Aizen had done all those years ago. She was looking forward to the coming days.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**It seems the poll is neck to neck. Majority agrees to change the pairing which I have obliged. As for the poll results for anti-hero and a reformed hero is a mixed one. The poll result was neck by neck and I think I will decide whether the si is a hero or not as the story progress later on.**

**Anyway, thank you all for participating in the poll. **


	11. It starts

**AN: Sorry for the long wait. This chapter was long overdue but I was sitting on it for some time as I was unsure whether to continue with this story. Taking a second look at it I am not completely satisfied with how the story turned out. So I was of the opinion to either scrap the whole thing or to rewrite it from the start. But a bit of unexpected urge came over me to continue with the story so here it goes. Hope you enjoy it.**

**SOUL SOCIETY **

Aizen was reexamining all his plans as the game was about to begin. He had already amassed a mountain of data from Indra's evolution itself but the elder Kurosaki had already become a full-fledged hollow during the time of his transcendence. Which is why Aizen was eager to study the other Kurosaki twin who is still a human and that means the different powers within Ichigo Kurosaki was still in a race for supremacy. The board was set and all he needed was for the pawns to enter the game. His thoughts were interrupted when Gin entered the Spirit Library and found him.

"Captain Aizen, our friends from Karakura town has arrived in Rukongai." Gin said with a smirk

"Then it will be rude of us not to welcome them properly. I hope you will give them a warm welcome." Aizen said with a raised eyebrow with a small smirk that would have made his personal fan club swoon and his enemies hesitate

"It will be my pleasure captain." Gin smirked and left the Spirit Library with a spring in his step

Aizen shook his head and went back to reading about the finer aspects of the kido Urahara developed to access the depths of one's soul. That was his backup plan if Rukia Kuchiki gets rescued before the Sokyoku vaporizes her soul. He wondered how Ichigo Kurosaki will react as he plucked one more person close to the boy's heart. Indra has already become a power-obsessed person as a result of his interference with Grand Fisher. Being a hollow also helped fuel that hunger for power in Indra which has given spectacular results in his opinion.

Aizen's thoughts were interrupted as the entire Soul Society shook with a tremor. He realized that the defences of Sereitei has been activated and that means his guests are here.

Slowly a smile came to Aizen's face. Things are about to get very interesting, he thought. There was one small thing that troubled him and that was the death of Misaki-san of squad 10. Indra has unnecessarily exposed himself by killing that stupid girl. Aizen didn't care if a lowly shinigami died but he cared when such things happened right before Captain Unahona. It seems he will have to reevaluate the plans he had for Indra in Soul Society. Speaking of which it was high time that a small meeting to take place with his associates.

Aizen put back all the books he was referring and exited the Spirit Library. He walked back to the 5th division barracks but a Hell Butterfly stopped him in his tracks. Aizen listened to the message it was carrying and after it was over the butterfly flew away.

Aizen was not the only one that got a Hell Butterfly delivering a message. Every squad captains were being summoned to the squad 1 barracks for an emergency meeting.

**XXXXXX**

Genryūsai Yamamoto watched patiently as the captains began to fill into the hall. It has been a long time since the defences of Soul Society has been put to use and he had a feeling this was not going to be the last time either.

"Where is Captain Ichimaru?" Yamamoto asked in general

"Must be running late." Kyoraku joked

Suddenly from the west gate, they felt a concentrated release of spiritual pressure and they could identify it as Ichimaru's easily.

"Well, there he is. At least we don't have to worry about any intruders." Kyoraku commented in a lax manner befitting his character

"Hm... We will see." Yamamoto grunted as the hold on his cane tightened as old instincts flared sensing that Soul Society was entering into an uncertain future

**XXXXX**

Gin arrived at the west gate just in time to see Jidanbō lift the gate for the invaders.

"Jidanbō-san, that is not very nice. You are being a bad boy by letting the invaders entry into Seireitei." Gin admonished the giant gatekeeper

"But they defeated me in combat. I have to permit them entry." Jidanbō argued while he still held the gate up with his two hands

"A gatekeeper's duty is to guard the gate not to open it." Gin admonished the giant and proceeded to cut off the left arm of Jidanbō.

The gate nearly fell down but Jidanbō managed to hoist the gate with his remaining arm.

"Hey, you. Who do you think you are?" Ichigo shouted as he marched straight to Ichimaru

"Ichigo you fool, get back here." Yoruichi shouted

"Are you talking to me?" Gin asked playfully

"Yeah I'm talking to you, you snake-eyed freak. You are gonna pay for that." Ichigo raised his sword and rushed at Gin despite Yoruichi's warning

"Shoot to kill, Shinso"

Ichimaru's Zanpakuto began to elongate and rushed at Ichigo. He managed to block Shinso using his giant Zanpakuto but the orange haired teen got pushed away from the gate as well.

"If the gatekeeper loses the battle with an intruder he must die rather than open the gate for enemies." Gin said as he once again struck Jidanbō with his Zanpakuto and forced him out from the gate closing it permanently.

"That was fun." Gin murmured and disappeared in a flash step

**XXXX **

All the captains looked at Ichimaru as he stepped into the meeting hall.

"Captain Gin Ichimaru. I take it by your presence here the ryoka has been taken care of." Yamamoto commented

"I am sorry to say I failed to eliminate them Head Captain." Gin said rubbing the back of his head sheepishly

"What? I find it hard to believe that you could not kill a bunch of ryoka." Mayuri Kurotsuchi said with a nasty sneer

"Explain yourself Captain Ichimaru." Yamamoto ordered seriously

"I got no excuses. I made a mistake. I am willing to take any punishment." Ichimaru said with his usual smile

"You don't really expect us to believe you made a mistake do you?" Kurotsuchi asked incredulously

"I will deal with you at a later date Captain Ichimaru. For now, you may be dismissed. Alert all your squads and be prepared for anything until the ryoka are captured." Yamamoto struck the floor with his wooden cane ending the meeting.

All the captains began to fill out of the room one by one. Aizen moved closer to Gin conscious of Toshiro being nearby.

"Whatever you are planning will not work out as you hope. I will stop you." Aizen murmured

"If I were you I would watch my back, Captain Aizen. You never know who might stab you from behind." Gin warned and they parted ways all the while Toshiro looked confused by this conversation

**XXXX**

"Thank you for hosting us Kukkaku." Yoruichi said as she sat in front of her longtime friend in her cat form sipping sake

"No need to thank me. So, are you really planning to get these kids to invade soul society?" Kukkaku asked

"Yes. Do you want to join us?" Yoruichi asked

"No. I just wanted to know that you were still pursuing this mad plan of yours. You do know this is suicide for them right?" Kukkaku asked as she took a mouthful of sake

"They are highly motivated and ready for anything. So, tell me did you complete the cannon?" Yoruichi asked

"The cannon is ready by I don't know whether it is going to work for them." Kukkaku expressed her doubts

"Why do you think that?" Yoruichi asked curiously

"The orange-haired one has no control over his spiritual energy. His spirit energy is all over the place. What were you teaching the kid?" Kukkaku asked mockingly

"I was not the one that was teaching him. Kisuke taught the kid. Besides the kid only regained his powers recently. There was not much time for us to teach him anything." Yoruichi defended herself

"Well, you better teach him to control his spirit energy because I can say with certainty that boy is going to get burned to a crisp by the barrier surrounding the Seireitei." Kukkaku said

"I will deal with it. You just ready the cannon." Yoruichi said as she turned around

"He is 'his' son isn't he?" Kukkaku asked before Yoruichi left the room

"Yes." Yoruichi answered hesitantly

"He doesn't know does he?" Kukkaku asked

"Not yet." Yoruichi answered truthfully

"Isshin might have his reasons I guess. Anyway, I will prepare the cannon by tomorrow." Kukkaku said

"Thank you, Kukkaku." Yoruichi thanked her friend as the cat/shinigami went back to Ichigo and his group of friends

**XXXXX**

"Well… well… well… Look who's here…" Gin smirked as he watched Indra stroll into their secret meeting place in a leisure pace

"Something amuses you Gin…?" Indra asked with a raised eyebrow as he took a seat opposite to Gin as they were a little early for the meeting

"Tut…tut…tut…You revealed your hand when you killed Misaki-san. What made you blow your cover in the first place? It was a strong cover that would have helped you blend in easily." Gin commented airly

"We would also like to know the reason for that Indra-kun." Aizen said as he walked into the room followed closely by Tosen. They took their seats, Aizen at the helm and Tosen taking a nearby seat of Gin

"I killed her because of her Zanpakuto." Indra answered shortly

"Her Zanpakuto? Please elaborate Indra-san." Tosen requested

"Misaki's Zanpakuto is parasitic in nature and it latches on to whoever she comes in direct contact. The Zanpakuto invades into the inner world of the host and controls others emotions. It took me a while to realise that and I purged that influence from my inner world along with Misaki." Indra said and the other three immediately understood the need for swift action.

"I see. You did the right thing but I am afraid your cover will be blown with this action. Captain Unahona will not be that easy to fool and she will be onto you without the aid of my Kyoka Suigetsu." Aizen mused as he looked between his associates

"Looks like Indra-kun will have to cut short his stay in Soul Society Captain Aizen." Gin said with a smirk

"That seems to be the case. It seems our escape plan must include Indra as well." Aizen said after thinking it over and then turned to Tosen, "Ensure that you adjust the plan for extracting four of us."

"I will inform Hooler Aizen-sama. The Menos will be ready when the time comes." Tosen promised

With that settled, Aizen turned his gaze on to Indra.

"It seems you will have to fade into the background in the chaos that is about to grip Seireitei. I advice that you stick close to Captain Hitsugaya until the opportune moment." Aizen said as he looked at the impassive looking Indra

"Very well." Indra agreed with a nod

Aizen then turned to his not so loyal sidekick Gin Ichimaru who was enjoying the fact that Aizen's initial plans had gone down the drain.

"I believe you know what to do with Captain Hitsugaya don't you Gin?" Aizen stared at Gin and his glasses flashed hiding the cruel eyes of Aizen

"Oh, I know what to do with our local prodigy Captain Aizen. I am almost looking forward to paying a visit to our esteemed members of Central 46. I am sure Tosen-san will also be excited about that little trip." Gin smirked and sneaked a glance at his blind fellow captain

"I have to agree with Gin, Aizen-sama. It will be extremely satisfying to dispense real justice to those corrupt fools in Central 46." Tosen said with a rare smile gracing his face and all the others saw it despite his efforts to hide it

"A day that is fast approaching my dear friend." Aizen smiled confidently

"If there is nothing else let's conclude this meeting and Gin I am disappointed that you forgot to bring tea to this meeting." Aizen said with a shake of his head as if admonishing a child

"There is a shortage of tea because of you captain. You are the one that has hoarded all those supplies in Las Noches." Gin pointed out as we all stood up

"We should always have some tea in reserve for occasions like this Gin. Without tea meetings like this can become dull and unsatisfactory." Aizen complained on the way and eventually began to go our own separate ways.

Meanwhile, Gin was seriously considering the pros and cons of poisoning the tea to kill Aizen. The mad man surely liked to drink his tea a lot. It was something to look into, he thought in the privacy of his mind.

**XXXXXX 2 days later XXXXXX**

A great battle was being fought by two powerful beings. The landscape around them had already turned into charged ash and all the structure and forests we're crumbling down under the intensity of the battle. Two swords clashed and an intense wave of spiritual energies battled against each other. As the deadlock of their powers continued one combatant charged a cero in his hand and fired at the other. The cero blasted away through a score of buildings and mountains. After the destructive wave died down, one smoking and partially burnt figure could be seen standing at the end of the path cleared by the Cero.

"It seems you have still not mastered it." Kagetsu commented as he floated down nearby his wielder who had several burn marks on his hand

"I am finding it difficult to activate it mid-battle." Indra commented as he concentrated his spirit energy and healed his own skin with instant regeneration

"I did warn you that the Blut Vene takes years of practice to even properly manifest." Kagetsu commented with a shrug

"You did but I don't have much time to wait for it to manifest naturally." Indra said as he once again concentrated on his spirit energy and tried to channel them through his veins. Slowly a blue glow began to take form in an intricate pattern on his forearm but it died down quickly making Indra sigh disappointedly

"Don't try to force it out with your blunt force Indra. As you train continuously it will manifest on its own." Kagetsu advised as he patted on Indra's shoulder comforting his wielder

"I hope so. Now that most of our plans have gone down the drain any advantage that I can have is a blessing." Indra huffed at the predicament he found himself in. To think that all of this happened because of a silly girl and a moment of weakness from his own part was embarrassing.

"What about that other side mission? Are you going to pursue it?" Kagetsu asked as he dismissed his blade

"I am putting it on hold for the moment. With my actions I have attracted unnecessary attention. The time is not right to make a move like that." Indra mused

"I agree. Perhaps you can revisit this mission at a later date when Soul Society is distracted and Aizen's gaze lay elsewhere." Kagetsu suggested

"Hmm… that seems to be the better way." Indra mused but he immediately saw the expression on Kagetsu change rapidly

"What happened?" Indra asked in concern

"You must return back to your body. Something has happened outside and your senses have been triggered." Kagetsu advised as all of the training were now done inside the inner world of Indra rather than in the physical world.

Indra nodded and as he concentrated his awareness transferred back to his body and he opened his eyes in the real world. Immediately he was assaulted by a screeching sound and wave after wave of some distantly familiar spiritual pressures. He immediately looked out of the window of his office in the squad barracks. In the sunny sky of Soul Society, he saw a large ball of Spirit energy battling for dominance over the protective barrier of Sereitei. He was sure every living being inside the city could feel the invaders as it was that obvious. Indra really wondered what made the former captain of Squad 2 take this route rather than other subtle methods. Whatever the case might be he knew things were about to get interesting around here and he was really looking forward to meeting his twin.

After a little while, the ball of spirit energy managed to pierce the barrier and each one of the ryoka split off in mid-air in different directions across the city. For a time Indra stood still and just as he expected pandemonium broke out within squad 10 barracks. As Indra walked out of his office he could see the panicked faces of squad 10 members all around. It was a little bit understandable as the Shinigami of Seireitei had never faced an enemy that had ever invade their home for a thousand years. Even the most prominent battles against powerful Vasto Lorde class hollows have always happened outside the protection of the city. This was the first that protection was breached and naturally, the Shinigami were troubled. Only those with poor sensing abilities panicked like that as others understood that there was only very few invaders and most of the spiritual pressure they felt were minuscule in comparison to the stronger Shinigami present in the city.

All the ruckus came to an end when the frosty spiritual pressure of Captain Hitsugaya focused upon the squad members. Indra silently slid next to Rangiku and together they watched Captain Hitsugaya bring order to the squad.

"There is no room for panic. The thirteen court guard squads will deal with the ryoka in a timely manner." Toshiro's confident voice cut into the silent squad like a promise and those who were filled with doubts regained their confidence

"Now, I want all of you to be diligent during your daily patrols. We don't know who the intruders are and that must be our priority. I am ordering you to not engage the ryoka if you find them. Observe their appearances and immediately report back along with their location as quickly as you can. Our objective must be to capture these ryoka alive and interrogate about their intentions and who helped them in infiltrating our impenetrable defence systems." Toshiro ordered with a steely look

"Do you think there is a traitor in our midst captain?" someone asked making a ripple of unease pass through the squad

"You all have your orders. Return to your duties." Toshiro barked out and immediately marched back into his office with Rangiku and Indra closely following him

Rangiku closed the door once all three of them were inside and turned to Toshiro with a disapproving look.

"You could have worded it a little more diplomatically, Captain." Rangiku admonished the youngest captain of Soul Society

"I agree. Talks of traitors among our ranks at this crucial state will only demoralize our forces." Indra pitched in as well while secretly he was quite pleased as this would make his job a lot easier as chaos and distrust will spread among the ranks of Shinigami making it harder for them to coordinate and track the ryoka.

"It was ill-thought-out. I am sorry." Toshiro slumped into his seat tiredly

"You should take some rest Captain. I can see dark circles under your eyes. Did you not sleep last night?" Rangiku asked in a suave manner

"I overheard a conversation lately and it has disturbed me somewhat." Toshiro murmured absently

"What are you talking about? A conversation between who?" Rangiku pounced on that and began hounding for more details but Indra could see that Toshiro had closed up tightly

"Enough Rangiku. It's just a small doubt but for now, leave it be." Toshiro greeted Rangiku with a serious look and she pouted at being denied some gossip material. Toshiro then turned his attention to his other subordinate who had an amused look on his face.

"Indra I want you to file a request for the transcripts of the trial of Rukia Kuchiki." Toshiro's order surprised Indra

"Uhh…Captain, Rukia Kuchiki is a member of a noble family. I don't think Indra can get the trial transcripts with normal procedures. I think the request must go directly from you to Central 46." Rangiku reminded her captain gently

"Oh, then write up a request and I will affix my seal." Toshiro ordered and Indra began to quickly draft a request.

But the die has been cast long ago and there was nothing much anyone could do except to brace and stand fast for the coming events that were surely going to shake the very foundations of Soul Society. The game has just begun, a game for the throne of heavens.


	12. A quincy in custody

Ikkaku was having a nice time as he bathed in the sunlight over the roof of one of the buildings. After the fight between his captain and whacko from squad 10 things have settled down quite nicely. Captain Zaraki has mellowed down a bit but now his captain was itching to have another go at Kurosaki and it was the head captain's threat of severe actions that kept Captain Zaraki in check. That doesn't mean squad 11 got scot-free from the debacle. Instead of assigning them to fight and destroy hollows squad 11 was now doing manual jobs like patrolling the streets, checking building quality etc. This was driving his fellow squad members nuts and they all were itching for a fight. After the first attempt by the ryoka to enter Seireitei he knew in his guts that there was going to be a fight. He just needs a little luck to be in the right spot at the right time when the fight inevitably starts.

"How long are you going to stay up there Ikkaku?" Yumichika asked as he stood by his long time friend

"As long as we are doing this manual job I am taking some much-needed rest. I will need it before the fight." Ikkaku said as he continued to bath in the sun

"You are awfully sure that you are going to fight. I don't see how they are going to invade seireitei with the barrier in place." Yumichika said as he nodded at the gigantic walls and the protective dome that was surrounding seireitei.

"What the hell is that?" Yumichika points at the rapidly advancing ball of energy and not a moment later it began to grind into the barrier

"Ha, what did I tell ya Yumichika. It is starting." Ikkaku shouted as a grin settled on his face and he sat up looking eagerly at the energy dome. He was not disappointed as the ball of energy managed to pierce through the barrier of seireitei and it began to split off in mid-air. Ikkaku and Yumichika watched as a beam of light struck close to their position a few buildings away. They exchanged a grin and set off in the direction of the crash site eagerly. As they arrived near the crash site they saw two ryoka dusting themselves and climbing out of the crater arguing amongst themselves. One was in a shinigami garb and had orange hair for the soul king's sake. The other was well dressed for an outlaw and had the look of a wild boar or was it a pig, they couldn't agree on that.

"Well… well… well… look what we have here. Some lowly ryoka have graced us with their presence Yumichika. Didn't I say that I had a feeling we were gonna be lucky?" Ikkaku smirked at his comrade

"You are right Ikkaku. But let's not be ungrateful to our guests and welcome them properly." Yumichika said in a poised manner

Ikkaku and Yumichika jumped in front of Ichigo and Ganju who had set aside their arguing in favour of scrutinising the enemy they were facing.

"I will take on the girly looking one you deal with the bald one." Ganju murmured to Ichigo who didn't have a chance to react as Ganju threw several smoke bombs at Yumichika and ran away from there immediately. That made Yumichika chase after Ganju all the while coughing as he inhaled a lot of smoke.

Ichigo looked at the direction where Ganju ran with a look of concern but squared himself to face his own enemy. He placed his hand on his Zanpakuto on his back and pulled. The gigantic khyber knife came free of its bandages and Ichigo pointed it at Ikakku.

"Where is Rukia Kuchiki?" Ichigo asked with a frown

"So you are after the prisoner huh. If you want to know about Kuchiki you have to defeat me." Ikkaku shouted with a battle-hungry gaze

"Then I will beat it out of you myself." Ichigo gripped Zangetsu tightly in preparation for an attack

"In that case be ready to eat dirt you foolish ryoka." Ikkaku roared and to Ichigo's confusion and horror his opponent began to dance with ridiculous moves

"What the hell are you doing bald face?" Ichigo yelled at the ridiculous situation he found himself in

"This is my lucky dance ryoka and don't you dare call me bald or else I am going to rip you into tiny little pieces." Ikkaku shouted as he stopped his lucky dance and became serious

"What should I call then?" Ichigo asked

"I am Ikkaku Madarame, the third seat of squad 11." Ikkaku introduced himself as he moved straight for Ichigo with an overhead swing. Ichigo blocked Ikkaku's attempt and began to apply more force into his goant Zanpakuto.

"I am Ichigo Kurosaki and I will defeat you." Ichigo shouted as he pushed with all his strength and surprisingly that managed to blast away Ikkaku into the wall of a nearby building.

'Kurosaki? Is he related to Indra Kurosaki? But this guy is so different than Indra-san.' Ikkaku's mind was filled with questions but he pushed that away for the time being and decided to just enjoy the fight.

Ikkaku let loose a battle cry and rushed at Ichigo. Their swords clashed in a shower of sparks and they began to exchange blow after blow. Ikkaku gritted his teeth in frustration as he couldn't breach the guard of Ichigo. As Ikkaku caught one overhead slash from Ichigo with his sword he saw an opportunity and took it. Ikkaku flicked his wrist and slid his sword right under the guard of Ichigo but in the process he exposed himself. Thankfully both Ichigo and Ikkaku jumped away avoiding any serious injury. But after a little while, they realised they both became injured as blood began to drip over their eyes.

Ikkaku swiped his hand over his left brow to find blood on his hand which made him smile.

"Huh, look at that. You cut me." Ikkaku said impressed by the sportsmanship of his enemy. He took out an ointment from the hilt of his Zanpakuto and applied it above his eyebrow.

"Tell me something, who taught you to fight ryoka-boy?" Ikkaku asked curiously

"Kisuke Urahara." Ichigo answered with a lopsided smirk

Ikkaku's eyes widened at that proclamation. He was a little surprised that the former captain of squad 12 trained his opponent.

'Urahara is a captain class shinigami and a crafty bugger to boot. I can't treat any student of his easily.' Ikkaku thought and slowly he began to increase his reissue output

"In that case, there is no point in dragging this out. It will be very rude of me to kill a student of Urahara so easily." Ikkaku proclaimed and once again they engaged in a battle of sportsmanship.

Ikakku let Ichigo get the better hand in the fight and that made Ichigo lower his guard. Ikkaku used this moment to release the reaitsu that he was gathering to release his Zanpakuto.

**"Extend, Hōzukimaru."**

In a flash of smoke Hōzukimaru's shikai was activated and his sword grew into a naginata that managed punch a little into Ichigo's shoulder before the orange-haired teen could dodge completely.

Ichigo pressed his hand over his bleeding shoulder in pain. He observed the naginata that was now in Ikkaku's hand a little apprehensively.

"So this is the true form of your Zanpakuto?" Ichigo observed the Zanpakuto and he now knew that Ikkaku will have more reach with this weapon. But that also means he himself will be able to defeat Ikkaku so long as he attack in close quarters. Ichigo began to pump in more reitsu into Zangetsu and charged at Ikkaku.

As Ichigo expected Ikkaku kept him at bay with a series of jabs with his spear tip. Ichigo was not going to dance to Ikkaku's tune so he slid down through the ground and deflected the spear with Zangetsu which left Ikkaku wide open. 'This is my chance.' Ichigo thought as he went in for a slash aimed straight at Ikkaku's heart. But Ichigo's eyes widened as the naginata in Ikkaku's hand split up into a sansetsukon and one part of it smashed into Ichigo's cheek blowing him away from Ikkaku.

"Ha ha ha ha how's that Ichigo?" Ikkaku laughed as he began to attack with the sansetsukon that was now proving too much for Ichigo's defences. Each blow from the sansetsukon left a red mark on Ichigo's body and even with a large sword like Zangetsu was proving to be not enough to withstand the onslaught of Ikkaku.

Then out of nowhere, Ichigo found himself with a tunnel vision and he attacked with Zangetsu in instinct. There was a blinding flash of light and an explosion which left Ichigo dazed for a moment. As the smoke cleared he found Ikkaku lying prone bleeding on the ground with a large gash on his chest.

For a moment Ichigo stood there with a confused look but he was brought out of the stupor when Ikkaku's zanpakuto glowed a red colour and returned to being a regular sword. Ichigo carefully moved near Ikkaku but he found the bald Shinigami lying unconscious on the floor bleeding quite heavily. His eyes strayed from Ikkaku to the Zanpakuto that lay close to the shinigami. With a sigh, he took the zanpakuto and found the ointment hidden inside the hilt. He began to apply the ointment on his wounds from the battle. There were quite a few of them so it took some time to apply. After he was finished he was about to leave but something stopped him from leaving the injured shinigami.

'He was my enemy but do I really want to let this guy suffer or worse bleed to death?' Ichigo thought and it took him no time to come to a decision. He began to apply the leftover ointment on Ikkaku's wounds. Years of helping out in his dad's clinic have gifted Ichigo with a set of steady hands and that came to use as he carefully applied the ointment over the wounds of the defeated Shinigami.

Ikkaku woke up with a strange burning sensation all over his body. He blinked his eyes and he could vaguely see a blurry figure of someone close to him. He blinked a few times and saw a mop of orange hair. That immediately clued in who he was seeing and he tried to sit up quickly.

"Stay down else you will worsen your injuries." Ichigo said as he pushed down Ikkaku

It was then that Ikkaku realised the burning sensation on his body was because of the ointment.

"You! What did you do?" Ikkaku snarled

"I applied your ointment on myself and on you." Ichigo said with a shrug

"You fool. I am your enemy and you are wasting your time on healing me?" Ikkaku shouted incredulously

"I am not here to kill anyone. I am here to save my friend, Rukia." Ichigo said as he stood up and secured Zangetsu over his shoulder

"You are crazy. How do you expect that to happen without treating your enemies as enemies you stupid strawberry." Ikkaku shouted

"What did you call me bald-face?" Ichigo developed a tick mark

"You heard me." Ikkaku smirked

"Whatever just tell me where Rukia is being held and I will be on my way." Ichigo said as his classic frown returned to his face

Ikkaku let out a sigh and decided to pass on the information since Ichigo defeated him in battle.

"Rukia Kuchiki is held in Senzaikyū. It is a prison that will absorb the reitsu of a spiritual being and weaken them for execution." Ikkaku answered

"Where is this prison located?" Ichigo asked

"It is the tallest tower in seireitei. You can see it from here." Ikkaku pointed at the giant tower that was pointing straight into the sky

"Thanks." Ichigo began to walk away from the downed form of Ikkaku

"Wait." Ikkaku called back "Are you the strongest in your group?" Ikkaku asked

"Hmm…. I think so." Ichigo answered as he paused

"Then you better watch out for my captain, Zaraki Kenpachi. He will track you down and fight you as you are the strongest of your group." Ikkaku warned

"Thanks for the heads up." Ichigo was about to run away but Ikkaku stopped him

"Do you have any family here in seireitei?" Ikkaku asked

"No. Why do you ask?" Ichigo asked with a raised eyebrow

"Do you know anyone with the name of Indra Kurosaki?" Ikkaku asked

Ichigo froze hearing that name and a cold icy feeling passed through his body. Before he could ask anything he saw a group of Shinigami chasing Ganju who was running at the very front carrying a petite shinigami on his shoulder.

"Ichigo run if you want to live." Ganju screamed as he dragged Ichigo away with him as he passed by. Ichigo couldn't argue as a lot of screaming shinigami were after their blood. So he went along with Ganju and ran away but his mind was a mess of emotions.

After running circles around the chasing shinigami, they finally managed to throw them off the trail and hid inside a storage room. It was then that Ichigo noticed there was an additional guest among them.

"Who the hell are you?" Ichigo frowned at the petite looking shinigami

"I am Hanatarō Yamada of, the seventh seat of the fourth division." Hanatarō said with a troubled look as he nervously looked at Ganju and Ichigo

Ichigo turned to Ganju and hit him right over the head.

"Ow. What was that for Ichigo?" Ganju screamed

"What were you thinking by dragging a shinigami around with you?" Ichigo shouted as he pointed his finger at Hanatarō who flinched

"Hey, if it was not for me those thugs from the eleventh division would have killed this kid." Ganju defended himself

"Whatever. We have to leave Hanatarō here and find Rukia." Ichigo insisted and Ganju nodded. Together they began to plan out a route to take from their position but was interrupted by Hanatarō

"If you are going to save Rukia then I will help you. I know where she is held and I can take you there safely." Hanatarō in a moment of bravery offered his services

Both Ichigo and Ganju looked at Hanatarō incredulously.

"Why the hell would you want to help us save Rukia? Why would you betray your own comrades?" Ichigo asked suspiciously

"She is my friend and she had told me a lot about you and how much she enjoyed her stay in the human world with your family Ichigo-san." Hanatarō said even as he reeled under the intense scrutiny of Ichigo and Ganju

"How do you know Rukia?" Ichigo asked curiously relaxing his stance

"When Kuchiki-san was captured she was imprisoned in a holding cell of the sixth division. I was assigned as a janitor there and we became friends. She often talked about you Ichigo. She was also sad that she was the reason that your life drastically changed in the human world." Hanatarō shook his head sadly

"So you can lead us to Rukia and you have access to her prison cell?" Ichigo asked excitedly as his resolve to save Rukia all the more stronger.

"Oh no. Rukia has been moved to Senzaikyū and I don't have access to that place. But I know where it is and I can lead you there in a safe route." Hanatarō said

"How?" Ganju asked before Ichigo could

"There are sewers under seireitei and they are spread out across the city. Only a few fourth division members use this network to transport medical supplies." Hanatarō suggested

Ichigo and Ganju agreed with the plan and together they followed Hanatarō into the sewers. As they began their journey Hanatarō began to explain in detail about how he met Rukia. Ganju was listening with rapt attention but Ichigo's mind was still stuck upon the revelation that his twin might be alive and well in Seireitei. In all the chaos that was his life he never thought of the possibility that his own late brother could have joined the thirteen court guard squads. But more than ever he needs to confirm whether Ikkaku was talking about the Indra he knew rather than some other stranger. The main reason that he doubted the identity of the Indra Ikkaku spoke about was because Rukia never mentioned this guy to him. In fact, Rukia knew about what happened to his twin brother and mother and why would she keep something like that from him if she knew.

"Hanatarō do you know anyone by the name of Indra Kurosaki?" Ichigo suddenly asked breaking the flow of Hanatarō's story mode which was filled with a lot of bullying and bullies

"I think so. I remember someone named Indra Kurosaki joining the 10th division quite recently. There are rumours floating around that he managed to defeat Captain Zaraki Kenpachi of 11th division." Hanatarō rubbed the back of his head nervously

"Can you describe how he looks?" Ichigo asked curiously

"Long dark hair and he is tall as you are Ichigo-san. He is pale white and has an oppressive aura around him which is scary. I have not seen him up close but the rumour is that he is really good looking and as powerful as a Captain. I am sorry I don't know much about him." Hanatarō apologized

"Why do you want to know about this guy Ichigo?" Ganju asked curiously

"I had a twin brother whose name was Indra Kurosaki and he died when we were really young. I think the shinigami that Ikkaku and Hanatarō speaks about is possibly my brother." Ichigo said as an excited look came over him

"Don't be so sure to celebrate Ichigo. Even if this shinigami is your brother it is also possible that he does not remember you. New souls that arrive in Soul Society loses all their memories during konso. We must first rescue your friend and then we can worry about your brother but don't keep your hopes too high." Ganju warned and they continued their journey while Ichigo was having an internal battle with himself

**XXXXX**

Indra walked in a sedate pace towards the Central 46. This was the agreed-upon time for him to meet up with the three traitorous captains. Seeing as an emergency session of the central 46 was called it was finally time to do away with the governing body of soul society. On the way, he met up with Kaname Tosen who was also due to the same destination.

"I see you are sharp as ever Kaname-san." Indra commented as he walked next to the blind captain

"A chance to suspense true justice to the corrupt and rotten structure of shinigami is a chance that I won't be late for." Tosen said as they neared the building.

"You seem to have a personal stake to get rid of this governing body Kaname-san. Why is that?" Indra prodded lightly to see whether the tough exterior of the blind shinigami would have cracks and he was not disappointed

"All the corrupt power-grabbing trash of soul society meets in this single place. Most importantly this is also the place where most of the noble families of seireitei meet, debate, and create laws. This has also been the chamber where criminals and mass murderers were set free. The barbaric laws of soul society were forged in this building. In soul society's history the central 46 has never fallen to enemy assault but today that is going to change." Tosen took a deep breath to calm himself after that rant

"I can see the two of you are getting along well." Aizen commented as he arrived with Gin closely following him

"I think this the start of a long and enduring friendship like ourselves captain Aizen." Gin smirked

"Focus on the matter at hand Gin. We are after all going to commit the greatest 'crime' in the recorded history of soul society." Tosen said and all of them took a moment to let that sink in

"There is no point in delaying the inevitable, shall we." Aizen said as he led the group to the entrance of the building

The guards stationed outside didn't even twitch as the four shinigami crossed the entrance as they were under Kyoka Suigetsu's influence. It was for the first time Indra was within the chambers of Central 46 and it was built as pompous as it could be to match the ego of the people that inhabit it. There was a series of stairs that were leading to the balcony of a giant done like structure. There was also a long hallway that had many rooms and even several sealed chambers. Just from the interior design of a small part Indra could guess that the meeting chamber was in circular shape with different levels to house the representatives of central 46.

Aizen moved closer to a large open door and entered the chamber in a measured pace. Indra and the others closely followed Aizen into the chamber and was greeted by the sight of different bickering men sitting around the chamber. Then the main door and entrance if the building became sealed shit and the session of Central 46 started.

"You see how ignorant they are Indra. Even now they are bickering amongst themselves and playing the game of greatest exploitation our world has ever seen." Aizen commented as he waited serenely for the starting of the session

One member of the governing body stood up and addressed the chamber.

"There has been repeated attempts by the 13th division and 6th division to interfere in the 20th district of Rukongai. The slave traders in the outer districts have been very cooperative with our agenda and they have been instrumental in securing resources we need. I say it is time that we impose more restrictive budgets on the gotel 13. They are getting too bold nowadays."

Another member stood up from the opposite end of the aisle and addressed the chamber.

"It is the opinion of the Tsunayashiro clan that mixing the rotten rabble from Rukongai has affected the gotel 13. It has put rebellious thoughts on several 'enlightened and liberal' shinigami to advocate for establishing 'peace' in Rukongai. This kind of thinking must be stopped else rebellious elements will drain the power of noble families."

Many of the representatives showed their support by clapping a few times on their desks.

Tosen slowly began to unsheathe his zanpakuto all the while the chamber continued to carelessly debate and plan to continue sucking the Rukongai dry.

"You said later that I have a personal stake in destroying these corrupt trash from this world. You are correct in that assessment Indra-san. When I was young I had a friend who helped me overcome my blindness. She was a talented shinigami but above all else she was just, compassionate and strong. The Tsunayashiro clan head murdered her and this entire farce of a chamber buried it all away. Her killer still roams free and I took a vow to teach them all the true might of Justice one day. This is why I took her zanpakuto as my own and I bided my time when her soul can truly rest easy."

With that said Tosen disappeared in a flash and Indra saw the representative from the Tsunayashiro clan get bisected into two parts from a single swing of Tosen's sword. For a moment there was silence and it was broken by the sound of two halves of the body fall on the floor. Aizen had removed the hypnosis of Kyoka Suigetsu just as Tosen moved and the entire chamber bore witness to the death of one of their colleague.

There was pandemonium as several representatives stood up in alarm. Others were frozen in shock and some were screaming at the four shinigami.

"Captain Tosen, Aizen, Ichimaru. What is the meaning of this?" several members shouted

"This is justice. This is the Justice that has been so far denied to the people who have unjustly suffered under the depravities of trash like you." Tosen calmly said and he began to cut down anyone that moved

"Shall we join in the fun…" Aizen smirked as he spun his zanpakuto in his hand and cut straight through the neck of a fleeing nobleman

"What about you Indra? Want to join on the fun?" Gin took out his own sword ready to deliver death

"Why not?" Indra shrugged and took out his own zanpakuto and began to cut down anyone that moved toward the exits on the northern side of the chamber.

It was a slaughter as the four captains drowned the chambers in blood. Screams of the members of central 46 echoed in the chambers. They pleaded and grovelled on their knees for mercy but there was none. The pristine white marbles of the chamber were stained with blood by the time Aizen and his subordinates were done with the governing body of seireitei. Surrounded by blood Aizen stepped forward on a raised platform and addressed his three accomplices.

"This is just the start. The corruption that has affected soul society is not originated from here. It starts from the Soul King and the rot must be cleared from the point of origin. It is my aim to bring the end of Soul King and remake the world into a more vibrant society. For this to happen we must tear down the old structures that support this corrupt world. The central 46 has fallen and the next to fall will be the gotei 13. After that, we destroy the noble families of soul society and finally the soul king himself. This is the start of the war, a war for a better and new world." Aizen proclaimed

"Mm… Captain, you need to work on your speeches a little more." Gin commented from the side-lines breaking the silence

"Don't you worry about that Gin. I am working on it and by the end, I will have a more concrete speech put together." Aizen commented lightly not at all bothered by Gin's antics

"There are still the aides left in the personal chambers and the hallways." Tosen reminded everyone

"Then let's not keep them waiting for their due rewards." Aizen smirked and walked over a sea of blood towards the exit.

What followed was a close repeat of the massacre in the chamber. Not a single person was spared in the slaughter that followed. From the lowest aides to the highest-ranking nobles every single one of them lay dead choking on their own blood within half an hour. After that part was done they met near the exit of the building.

"Tonight I will be 'dying' a tragic death. After that I will be here in central 46 waiting for the perfect timing." Aizen said and then turned to Gin

"You know how to handle our dear friend Hitsugaya. Ensure that he attacks you right in front of Momo." Aizen ordered looking at Gin

"Of course captain Aizen." Gin said with his usual smile

"Indra you stay close to Captain Hitsugaya. When the time comes you know what to do." Aizen said and Indra nodded showing his assent

"Tosen will be our mutual contact in the next few days. We won't be meeting each other until the day if the execution and I will further bring chaos in the ranks of hotel 13 with restrictive orders from central 46. Are there any questions? No. Let's get to it then."

Indra returned back to squad 10 barracks quickly and took up his duties. Squad 10 was in charge of the north-western corner of seireitei and Indra was in charge of leading patrols. He had consciously taken up more duties to free Toshiro and Rangiku from official duties. Seeing as they were going to be busy from tonight he thought it would be the least that he could do for them. There is also the fact that the living world needs more shinigami patrols and that left all divisions in a state of disarray with the invasion. After assigning some shinigami patrols in the world of the living Indra personally led a team to patrol the North-Western sector of seireitei. Till late evening he oversaw strict patrols in the region by questioning some residents and even patrolling remote areas regularly. After the sunset, Indra returned back to his office while the assigning night shifts to some of his subordinates. By then rumours were floating around that the lieutenant of 6th division Renji Abarai and Ikkaku Madarame of 11th division had been defeated by an orange-haired ryoka.

This piece of news was a huge blow for the morale of regular shinigami. They were afraid that the ryoka were strong enough to defeat a seated officer and a lieutenant. Perhaps that was why Indra was immediately called into Captain Hitsugaya's office for a meeting.

**XXXXX**

Kurotsuchi Mayuri walked through seireitei with his daughter. While the average shinigami was leery of the creepy and cruel captain of the 12th division they were now positively blanching as they were greeted by the sight of a happy whistling Mayuri who had a spring in his step. Typically Mayuri was not paying any attention to those beings whom he considered inferior. In fact, his mind was occupied with the information he had gained from Ikkaku Madarame.

When he first heard that a group of ryoka had managed to infiltrate seireitei he was ecstatic. He was looking forward to an interesting test subject for years and fate had seen fit to deliver it to him. Now, all that he had to do was find the ryoka and begin experimentation right away. The only problem with that plan was that the thick-headed shinobi of other divisions were refusing to cooperate with him. The morons failed to understand that the ryoka were valuable research material. He was especially mad at that morons from 11th division and their thick-headed captain who evicted him from interrogating Ikkaku Madarame. But Mayuri was not the captain of R for nothing. He planted listening device discretely in the room and listened to the conversation between Ikkaku and Zaraki. It was from this conversation that he realised that the orange-haired ryoka boy might be a relative of Indra Kurosaki of 10th division. The moment he heard this piece of information he immediately started to dig into the family history of Ichigo Kurosaki. The 12th division agent that he had sent into Karakura town was extremely successful in obtaining all info regarding the Kurosaki family. All the agent had to do was set up a local server and hack into the local social security servers of the locality and the entire file of the Kurosaki family was amassed in digital format. The agent returned back to seireitei with full data and the mission ended within one hour. Mayuri was extremely pleased and he rewarded the agent by promising not to conduct any experiments on him for a year. He could see the spark of happiness in the eyes of the agent at the news.

Anyway that all happened hours ago and since then he had been preparing his division to set up a trap for the ryoka. Now that all preparations were ready he had one last piece of work to be done. This was why he and his 'daughter' Nemu visiting the 10th division.

"Captain Kurotsuchi I was not expecting you of all people to visit my division." Toshiro commented as he looked coldly at the eccentric captain of squad 12

"I was advised by the Head Captain that inter-division cooperation is necessary to stop the ryoka invasion. This has led me straight to you Captain Hitsugaya. As you know the 12th division is in charge of improving our defence from other spiritual realms and now the ryoka invasion has proven that we are vulnerable from the living world. It is imperative that we capture the ryoka to determine the way they invaded us and create suitable defences against such methods for the future." Mayuri tactically framed his words in such a way to appeal to the sense of duty that the young shinigami captain could stand behind

"How can we help you?" Toshiro asked with a sigh knowing that the freak was twisting his arm for something and going at it in a way that even Toshiro found himself not to protest as this was for the security of seireitei

"In my efforts to understand the ryoka and their objective in seireitei I came across a piece of information that may interest you, Captain Hitsugaya. It is something regarding your third seat officer Indra Kurosaki." Myuri said in his creepy voice and handed over the information his agent collected from the living world

Toshiro took the file handed over to him a little apprehensively and opened it. The first page had a photo of a small boy that looked remarkably similar to a younger version of Indra. Toshiro took a deep breath and began going through the file and he was relieved to see that the young Indra was listed as dead at a young age. That means Indra's arrival in soul society matched the time frame so that means Indra was not a traitor.

Toshiro turned to the next page and he saw several photos of an orange-haired teenager named Ichigo Kurosaki. As he read the file he realised this was the twin brother of Indra and was now probably responsible for this invasion. There was not much information about the family but there were some references about two sisters and a dead mother in the report. He closed the file and gave it back to Mayuri with a sigh.

"What do you hope to accomplish with this intel? You know as well as I do that blood relations in the living world does not matter in seireitei." Toshiro said with a hard look

"Your third seat may not remember his family in the living world but the ryoka will surely remember his brother. I just need your third seat to set up a trap for the ryoka. I can approach the Head Captain with this mission if you doubt my intentions." Mayuri said with a smile that Toshiro found quite appalling

"I have no problem in loaning my third seat if it will lead to the capture of ryoka. Just keep in mind that if your plan endangers my subordinate there will be consequences." Toshiro said coldly and nodded briefly to Rangiku who was listening to the full conversation. She immediately left the office to track down Indra.

"Don't you worry captain Hitsugaya. Your third seat will be safe and back in your squad barracks before tomorrow morning." Mayuri said and at that exact moment, Rangiku returned with Indra in tow.

"Captain, how may I be of assistance?" Indra settled into his role showing no surprise to the presence captain kurotsuchi

"Here read this…" Mayuri handed over the file to Indra who casually flicked through the pages and then gave it back to Mayuri

"You suspect I have some involvement with my brother's invasion?" Indra asked with a raised eyebrow

"On the contrary, I am sure that you have no involvement at all. But this unexpected find will surely put a bad light on you and I am sure you don't want that." Mayuri smirked

"I am sure you have a solution to my dilemma Captain." Indra frowned at the 12th squad captain

"Your aid in capturing the ryoka will clear any doubts about your loyalty and will, in fact, earn praise. I know that you have a bone to pick up with Zaraki and I will even write a letter of recommendation if you manage to put down that madman." Mayuri offered and he was sure this was something that would pull the young shinigami to jump at the chance

"I will cooperate with you captain Kurotsuchi if my captain allows it. The last mission with inter-squad cooperation didn't end well for some of squad 10 members." Indra said as he turned to Toshiro who gave his permission for the mission to go ahead.

Mayuri smiled in satisfaction as his plan succeeded and now he could almost feel that he was close to getting his hands on his new test subjects.

**XXXXXX**

Indra stood on the roof of a building under the cover of darkness observing Uryu Ishida and Inoue Orihime. He was only ordered to step in if the ryoka was found to be Ichigo so he was comfortably staying far away from the action. Just as in the anime he observed the two teens get caught red-handed by Makizō Aramaki of 11th division. It was then the 12th division members came into the 'rescue' of Uryu and Orihime.

Indra watched as Mayuri blew up his own subordinates to test the powers of his potential test subjects. Indra observed the shield created by Orihime that saved Ishida, Aramaki and herself from harm. In a classic bad guy style, Myuri made his entrance creeping out just about everyone including Indra. He could hear Uryu ordering Aramaki to take Orihime and run from there. Indra was not going to stop that from happening but he had an interest in Inoue Orihime. But Uryu, on the other hand, was an interesting individual simply for the fact that he carried Quincy relics and he was curious to study it up close.

Indra scoffed as Mayuri's arm was blown off by Uryu's spirit arrow. The arm quickly regrew after the freak injected himself with some drug but it was truly appalling that this moron was given the position of captain. The fight that followed was the most foolish fight he had ever seen. Mayuri was just bringing shame to all spirit beings by his 'brilliant' tactics to disable a teenage Quincy. It was truly pathetic in his opinion as Mayuri used Nemu as a distraction to cut down Ishida. Even then the freak merely managed to graze the arm of Uryu and then began a long monologue by insulting the Quincy. Frankly, this freak was really testing Indra's patience by simply breathing at this point. Uryu himself was not that far off as he dramatically swore on his pride as a Quincy to kill Myuri.

Indra sat up in attention as Uryu removed the Sanrei glove. He watched in fascination that Uryu's spiritual pressure skyrocketed easily surpassing Myuri in spiritual pressure alone. A strange armour covered Uryu and from the feel, he was getting this form was truly powerful but unsustainable and chaotic. Frankly, he had no idea how Uryu was even managing to hold this form intact and attack Myuri at the same time. He observed that the rate of absorption of spirit particles have tremendously increased in this form. It was a testament to Uryu's skill and brilliance that he managed to land a direct hit on Mayuri even though the attack lacked any killing intent. Mayuri survived the initial attack and activated his bankai while Uryu just stood there allowing his enemy to activate a higher form.

Indra watched with a bored look as Mayuri's freakish bankai spilt poison gas around the area. Indra moved a little back just in case but unfortunately, Uryu was not so lucky. The young Quincy inhaled a lot of poison and he sealed his fate. But Uryu had the last laugh as he created a strong reishi arrow and destroyed the bankai along with blowing a hole through Myuri. The 12th division captain stood there with a giant hole through his body for some time but ultimately escaped from the area by turning himself into a liquid. It was now that he decided to step into the show.

Indra stood up from his position and unleashed a good portion of his spiritual pressure into the area. That immediately caused Uryu to look in his direction. Indra raised his hand and gathered his spirit energy.

**"Hadou 58: Orchid Sky (Tenran)"**

A large tornado blast was fired from his arm that blew away all poison gas from the area. The force of the blast had pushed Uryu a few feet back and Indra flickered opposite to Uryu in a relaxed manner.

"You swore on your pride as a Quincy to kill Myuri Kurotsuchi and yet you did not, why?" Indra asked curiously

"I don't know. Who are you?" Ishida asked as he tightened his grip on his bow

"You are near death. You should take the antidote." Indra said as he looked pointedly at Nemu who was lying on the floor bleeding quite heavily.

Indra flash stepped close to her and began to apply healing kido. Nemu took out the antidote from behind her lieutenant badge and handed it over to Indra. He threw the bottle to Ishida who captured it with surprise but quickly took the antidote.

Uryu pointed his bow straight at Indra who was healing Nemu.

"Who are you and what is your intention here?" Uryu asked making Indra sigh as he stood up to face the Quincy

"My name is Indra Kurosaki and my intention is to capture you of course." Indra said as he drew his Zanpakuto from its sheath

"Kurosaki? Do you really think that you can succeed where your captain failed?" Uryu chalked up the name as a strange coincidence and gathered more spirit particles

"That moron is not my captain and you should never compare me to that fool who is a disgrace to all spiritual beings." Indra said as his eyes flashed for a moment and that was all the warning Uryu got as a kido binding bound him quickly

**"Bakudou 61: Six Rods of Light Prison (Rikujōkōrō)"**

Six yellow beams of light slammed into Uryu's midsection holding him in place. But Uryu by that point had released the huge arrow that he amassed straight for Indra.

Indra gave a simple flick of his Zanpakuto that deflected the arrow away from him. The giant arrow fell far back and a blinding explosion shook the ground under the force of the explosion.

"That's impossible." Uryu whispered as his eyes widened in disbelief

"Let me educate you on something. In a battle between two spiritual beings, the amount of spirit energy one possess decides the victor. Your capacity to absorb spirit energy is impressive but the fact is that you don't have the capacity to hold it in you." Indra walked closer to the struggling Quincy who was weakening faster

"That means the difference between our power is worlds away from each other my Quincy friend." Indra said as his blade flashed in the dark and Uryu's bow fell to the ground in two pieces. The armour that was protecting Uryu faded away into reishi particles and Uryu fell unconscious.

"Will you be alright?" Indra asked as he cast a sidelong look at Nemu who sat up and pushed herself up against the wall

"Other squad members will be arriving. I will be fine." Nemu said with a nod

Indra nodded and disappeared with Uryu over his shoulder. A few quick flash steps saw that he reach the squad 10 barracks. Toshiro and Rangiku were right across the holding cells and Indra approached them with Uryu.

"So you captured one ryoka. Where is captain Kurotsuchi?" Toshiro asked as several shinigami took Uryu and put him inside a holding cell

"The Quincy did a number on the captain. I doubt we will be seeing much of Captain Kurotsuchi anytime soon." Indra said with a shrug

"We can interrogate him later captain. Let him have some sleep for the time being." Rangiku for once became the voice of reason and Toshiro dropped all inquiries for the day

Later that night Indra lay comfortably on his bed and slowly sleep claimed him. If he was a little more aware he would have seen a black cat sitting on his window looking curiously at his sleeping form.


	13. A test of power

**Soul Society**

Yoruichi Shihoin was in a difficult position. The revelation that she had found young Indra in Soul Society of all places and even exactly in the 10 th division was a real shocker. Kisuke had told her that Indra had been eaten by a hollow but clearly, that was not the case. If Indra has somehow reached Soul Society then it was possible Aizen had a hand in this. But she couldn't really confirm her theory simply because she has no idea whether Aizen even knows about the Kurosaki family and Ishhin's survival from the hollow named White.

Then again it was possible the hollow somehow got purified and Indra arrived in Soul Society by natural means. She was not really good at deducing things like this as it was mostly Kisuke's style and unfortunately for her, he is far away for her to contact him. Now the question before her is what should she do with this information? Even if she tells Ichigo about his brother how will she explain her own knowledge about his family without compromising Isshin's identity? There is also the fact that Indra most likely would have no memories of his human family and it will only lead to more pain on both sides. Besides, she was afraid that she might draw Aizen's attention on to Indra needlessly if she meddles too much. In the end, she decided it was best to make contact with Indra after she had forced Aizen's hand to reveal himself to the entire Soul Society. After all, that was their plan B with this whole Hogyoku business to force Aizen to reveal himself with the Hogyoku as bait.

With their plan at a crucial stage, she didn't want to throw in more problems into her plate and that was why she decided to just concentrate on Ichigo. For the moment Ishida was safe in squad 10 barracks and Orihime was being held in squad 6 which left Ichigo, Ganju and Chad in the open field. In her mind, Chad could last one more day and that would be it. The rest will be up to Ichigo and force Aizen to reveal his hand before the entire Gotei 13. With that decision made she disappeared into an alley.

**XXXXX**

Indra woke up early in the morning because of the continuous banging on his door. He was really annoyed that his sleep time was cut short especially after the fiasco last night with Captain Kurotsuchi but he oped the door nonetheless.

"What is it Hifune?" Indra asked annoyed

"Sorry to disturb you, sir. But Captain Hitsugaya ordered you to take over his duties for the day." Hifune stated as he handed over a sealed scroll

"Where is lieutenant Matsumoto?" Indra asked

"Last night Captain Aizen was murdered, sir. His body has been found by Lieutenant Hinamori this morning. Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenant Matsumoto are investigating the matter for the time being." Hifune reported

"Very well then. Assemble all the seated officers and I will assign the duties in the World of Living." Indra said and Hifune vanished in a flash step to collect all seated members of Squad 10

A short time later every seated officers were in the meeting hall facing Indra.

"I am told captain of the fifth division Aizen Sosuke has been murdered by unknown assailants. Other than that I am in the dark like you all are but we have our duties to uphold rather than gossip about it in Soul Society. As such we have to resume our duties in the World of the Living despite the problems we face in our home. We will work as per schedule but I am holding two seated officers back in the the squad just in case of an emergency." Indra said as he assigned duties to the seated officers that would be taking teams of unseated shinigami to the world of the living

With the Rukongai closed-off, squad10 didn't have to patrol that area so that left a lot of Shinigami to be reassigned to the living world. After that meeting, Indra had to do some last-minute paperwork and send it off to squad 12 for the deployment of squad 10 shinigami into the living world. If there was going to be any unscheduled deployments Squad 12 would handle the assigning of missions themselves.

It took a better part of two hours for Indra to do all the necessary paperwork to sign-off on several missions. After that, he decided to practice some basic kido spells along with channelling lightning Kido through his body. From his repeated experiments he had discovered this nifty little trick to hold Shunko longer. The real difficulty of the technique was to spread the lightning Kido across the body like a defensive layer.

He walked into the training area of squad 10 and began firing Byakurai repeatedly. This was done to just get the feel of the nature of the energy that Byakurai released which helps in channelling the energy throughout the body. After getting a hang of the energy Indra rolled up his sleeves so as not to blow out the sleeves because of activating Shunko. Slowly he gathered his spirit energy through the vents in his wrists and instantly converted the energy into Kido energy and began to distribute it around his skin. With a bang Shunko activated and the ground beneath his feet shattered under the high concentration of energy. Disappearing in a flash of static he began to punch and kick several boulders reducing them to a pile of small rocks. He counted fifteen seconds before Shunko fizzled out. Fifteen seconds of Shunko was better than nothing and with the heightened speed, this short time was more than enough to deal with most enemies. Before he could continue training he felt the reitsu in the air shift and a considerably large spiritual pressure began to exert its influence. It was followed by another spiritual pressure and the two auras began to battle against each other. The two spiritual pressures were growing rapidly and he knew who was fighting. He continued to train while he kept his senses open not to miss the fight between Ichigo and Zaraki. He couldn't afford to be physically present in the fight especially when there were rumours that circulating around that Ichigo was his twin brother.

**XXXXX**

Ichigo was not in a desperate situation as he struggled to stand up. The stab wound on his heart from Captain Zaraki Kenpachi was bleeding quite heavily and he could feel his life bleeding away. The only thing he had managed to achieve by fighting Kenpachi was providing an opening for Ganju and Hanataro to save Rukia. Perhaps they will be able to rescue Rukia in his stead and that would be enough for him. Perhaps he should have just kept his mouth shut instead of confirming that he was indeed the brother of Indra to the madman before him. It was after that Kenpachi became vicious in battle and he suffered this fatal injury that was surely going to claim his life.

"What a waste of time you are! I thought you would be a strong opponent seeing as you were his brother. Perhaps Indra will find me once he learns that I killed you and then I will have a real fight to the death." Zaraki said with a manic expression and he turned his back on Ichigo to walk away

Ichigo who heard this began to get desperate as he struggled to stand.

'Get up dammit! Move! Move!' Ichigo screamed internally as he thought about his brother dying by Kenpachi's hand because of him

Suddenly Ichigo observed as the time literally stopped and Zangetsu manifested in the real world all on his own.

"Old man Zangetsu!" Ichigo said in surprise

"Do you know why you couldn't cut Zaraki Kenpachi with your blade?" Zangetsu asked as the Zanpakuto spirit looked down on his fallen wielder

"Because I am weak and not powerful enough." Ichigo answered disappointed at himself

"No Ichigo. You lost because you fear yourself. A blade filled with fear will be dull against any opponent." Zangetsu paused as he could see Ichigo was having an internal conflict

"If you can't even muster up the courage to banish your fear then why do you wish to stand up Ichigo? What is it that you hope to accomplish?" Zangetsu asked

"I want to protect my brother and my friends." Ichigo answered readily

"The intent to protect and the intent to kill is different Ichigo. When you were fighting Kenpachi you should have discarded your intent to protect. Instead, you held on to it and you hesitated in cutting down Kenpachi. I am a part of your soul and whenever you lose your resolve I will become duller in return. The only way to teach you this is when you face yourself in combat." Zangetsu said and suddenly Ichigo found himself in his inner world

"If you want to wield me again you will have to take me back yourself!" Zangetsu spoke from his side and Ichigo could no longer feel the comfortable weight of Zangetsu in his hand instead there was a nameless katana in his hand.

Ichigo quickly raised the katana in a defensive position on instinct and a large cleaver like blade struck his katana and pushed Ichigo back several feet

"You are weak Ichigo. You have no idea about how to use Zangetsu." Hollow Ichigo said as he appeared before Ichigo in full white.

Ichigo observed the newcomer warily especially considering the guy has black sclera and he was pale white. His eyes widened as the spiritual pressure of his white replica suddenly spiked.

Hollow Ichigo began spinning Zangetsu by its cloth and he started off attacking Ichigo by throwing Zangetsu. Ichigo was initially surprised at the attack and he used the katana to deflect Zangetsu but the force from the attack pushed Ichigo away while Hollow Ichigo laughed.

"Did you really think that it would be so easy to wield Zangetsu? You have only thought about making yourself stronger and not once did you think to ask Zangetsu to lend you power." Hollow Ichigo shouted as he increased the ferocity of his attacks that were steadily pushing Ichigo back

Ichigo was struggling to defend against all these attacks but he was carefully listening to his white replica. Thinking back on his own actions what the white guy said was true. Ichigo had only thought about getting stronger himself and never had he ever asked Zangetsu for help even when he knew that Zangetsu was a part of his soul.

"There is more to Zangetsu's power than you ever know Ichigo. If only you would have opened yourself up and lend it power then you would have realised the true power of your Zanpakuto. Don't you wordy, I will show you the true power of Zangetsu!" Hollow Ichigo shouted as he ran straight to Ichigo and clashed his blade with Ichigo's.

To everyone's surprise, the katana in Ichigo's hand disappeared and was replaced by Zangetsu.

"Huh, guess you are not a total moron after all." Hollow Ichigo smirked as he began to disappear into a black smoke

In the real world, Zaraki stopped walking as he felt a great surge of power. His eyes widened as he turned back and saw Ichigo standing up bathed in a strong aura of spiritual energy that was rising steadily. His eyes traced the wound on Ichigo's chest that had strangely stopped bleeding all of a sudden.

In the blink of an eye, Ichigo slashed across Kenpachi's chest and for the first time in the fight Kenpachi bled and the fight began anew.

Yoruichi watched the fight unfold down below in surprise. Just like Kisuke had predicted Ichigo's growth rate was tremendous. She watched in fascination as Ichigo's spiritual pressure matched Zaraki's when the Captain of squad 11 unleashed his full power. In the end, the fight ended with both combatants not able to fight anymore. Yoruichi pulled Ichigo away from the spot the minute the squad 11 lieutenant left with Zaraki.

Yoruichi had already witnessed Chad getting caught by Captain Shinsui. Now all that remained of their group was Ganju and Ichigo. She had already watched Ganju and Hanataro running straight for Rukia but she knew that would be a lost cause. It was time to heal Ichigo and let him achieve Bankai as Kisuke had planned. Already their plan was working as Aizen was playing dead and that means he is now going for the Hogyoku at the time of execution. All she had to do was to derail Aizen's plan and force Aizen to reveal himself before Gotei 13. She was hopeful with the Head Captain present Aizen will be promptly crushed and she could rest easy with that snivelling snake being burnt to a crisp. With that happy thought in mind, she vanished with an unconscious Ichigo on her shoulder straight for her hiding spot in the mountains.

Just as Yoruichi was making her escape several Hell Butterflies were dispatched by the Central 46 issuing wartime special orders that allowed even captain class shinigami to release their Zanpakuto inside Seireitei.

**XXXXX**

Byakuya Kuchiki was a stern man and anyone who knew him would agree with that wholeheartedly. He was widely regarded as a cold person but many of his shinigami colleagues were left completely flat-footed when he refused to help his sister when she landed on the wrong side of the law. Many expected the man to fight for his sister's freedom but in reality, the opposite happened. He never lifted a finger to help her and in fact, he hunted down Rukia and took her into custody as per the directives of Central 46.

While many would wonder how Byakuya was able to be completely dispassionate to the plight of his sister he scoffed at all of them. In a secluded part of his mind, he learned to help Rukia but he shut off that part in favour of executing his duty as a Captain and the clan head of Kuchiki clan.

After Byakuya had dealt with Rukia and brought her back to Soul Society to face judgement he had resigned himself to what will be happening next. He had accepted that Rukia was going to die but then the Ryoka invasion happened that derailed the stability of Seireitei. For Byakuya who had grown up hearing the great tales of Gotei 13, it was a sad thing to watch as all those carefully constructed greatness fall around like a castle made of cards. It was shameful and disrespectful to all those who have given their lives to uphold the sanctity of Soul Society and its governing body. That's why he didn't feel an ounce of mercy as he cut down Ganju in front of Rukia. In his mind, this whole Ryoka invasion was a waste of everyone's time and if it was the life of his sister that was standing in the way of restoring order and peace in Seireitei then he was willing to do the honours. He raised his hand and was about to take Rukia's life with his released Zanpakuto but Ukitake quickly blocked him.

"My…my… Why have you released your Zanpakuto Captain Byakuya? You know it is against regulations for Captains to release their Zanpakuto within Seireitei.!" Ukitake admonished

"Haven't you heard? Wartime orders have been initiated." Byakuya said as he lowered his hand and reformed his blade

"Wartime orders!" Ukitake was surprised but before anything else could be said both captains paused as they felt a strong spiritual pressure approaching them and Byakuya immediately recognized whose it was

**XXXXX**

Indra also recognised what was happening as he felt both Byakuya's and Ichigo's presence together. He has been monitoring the entire situation carefully and he could feel that both Byakuya and Ichigo had clashed. Similarly, he could also feel Momo Hinamori has clashed with Lieutenant Kira of the third division. There was going to be quite a few dramas in the coming days from that alone. His close observation of the two battles was disrupted when a Hell Butterfly arrived with the message of immediate summons to the squad 12 barracks.

Indra was quick to arrive and he was immediately led in to meet Kondo Isami who managed the Senkaimon.

"What happened?" Indra asked as he saw all twelfth division members scrambling around in panic

"Our sensors spiked in a routine check-up and found fifteen hollow signatures in one place. There is also a strange signature that we can't exactly pinpoint as well." Isami said

"Which class are the Hollows and where exactly is the location?" Indra asked

"They are all Gillian and they are all in the Amazon rain forest. We are tracking them as we speak and they are moving straight for human settlements nearby." Isami said as he monitored the readings in a small device in his hand

"That's strange behaviour for Gillian. They would not leave Hueco Mundo in such large groups." Indra commented as he watched the energy signatures in the device

"That was our thought as well. We believe this strange energy signature is the cause of the Gillians appearing in the Human World. As of now, we have no idea what they are aiming for. There is nothing in that region that would be an interest for Hollows or any other spiritual beings." Isami said as he had triple-checked the area for any peculiarities but the result came up empty all the time

"You should have informed the captains immediately." Indra commented idly

"What do you think I did? I immediately sent all available Hell butterflies to all captain class Shinigami. It is just that you were the first to respond seeing as the captains and most of the lieutenants are busy with the chaos going on in Seireitei." Isami said as he quickly began to type something in the small device he had in his hand

"Are you ready to go in? We have already erected a special barrier to keep out the spiritual pressure from affecting humans. I am sure someone will join you shortly." Isami suggested and Indra gave the go-ahead to open the Senkaimon. Within minutes the wooden doors appeared and he stepped in into the living world.

It has been a better part of eight years or so since Indra had stepped into the living world. Seeing the living world again brought back some fond memories that he shared with his family in Karakura town. Most of those fond memories were about his sisters as it was hard to not get attached to those two even with his bonus life experience. The nostalgia that he was feeling quickly left him as the Gillians issued a battle cry in his direction and began to patiently make their way.

One of the Gillian who was close to Indra started gathering a red Cero in its mouth. During his stay in Hueco Mundo, he had studied the nature of Gillian and the best way to deal with them was by turning their own energy against them. They have a very hard Hierro and the bloody things were more than 20ft high. While the Gillians were slow and dumb enough not to be a threat to an Adjuchas type hollow. Still, it required a considerable amount of energy to dispatch the Gillians. The easiest way to kill them is by attacking them when they have amassed a Cero just like the one before Indra was doing.

Just as Indra realised the Gillian was ready to unleash the Cero it has amassed in its mouth he raised his hand channelling a kido.

**"Hadou 54: Abolishing Flames (Haien)"**

A blast of purple beam blasted away from Indra's hand and struck at the huge zero that was forming in the Gillian's mouth. The purple beam destabilized the Cero and the Gillian was blasted to kingdom come within seconds consequently setting a lot of trees on fire as well.

The other Gillians seeing their comrade fie let out a screech that made Indra cringe. Two Gillians began gathering Cero while others began to thrash around the area flattering several hills and damaging the forest. Indra raised his right palm and aimed at a Gillian.

**"Hadou 63: Thunder Roar Cannon (Raikouhou)"**

The concentrated blast of energy destabilized the Cero of the Gillian which vaporized it instantly. By this time the second Gillian fired its Cero straight at Indra. He could dodge the blast but that would destroy much of the landscape so he used a _Danku_ to block the high-density energy beam and flash stepped right behind the Gillian's head. Indra pressed his forefinger on the back of its head put a hole through the head courtesy of a _Byakuri_. As he turned to the other twelve Gillian's they were all charging Cero in their mouths.

"Requesting immediate limiter release." Indra spoke into the communication device that he was handed over

"Don't worry, help is on the way." A voice from the other end spoke and sure enough, a senkaimon opened up and Captain Soi Fon stepped out of the portal. That was the exact moment twelve Ceros barraged straight aimed at their general location

**"Bakudou 81: Splitting Void (Danku)"**

A large transparent barrier sprung up in a wide area courtesy of Indra that blocked the multiple Ceros. But the resulting shockwave changed the landscape as vast swaths of forest lands were incinerated on spot. Before Indra could say anything to Soi Fon the captain of Squad 2 activated _Shunko _and began her assault on the Gillians.

Not wanting to be outdone by the uppity captain Indra drew his Zanpakuto and placed it horizontally with his left palm pressing on the blunt side of the blade. He began channelling spirit energy into the blade for a modified version of a kido.

**"Bakudou 63: Winding Binding Chains (Sajo Sabaku)."**

From the silver blade of the zanpakuto golden ropes spread out into the open space that quickly bound six Gillians restricting their movements. With that done he quickly began the chanting for a destructive kido.

**"_Scattered beast bones! Spire, Crimson Crystal, Steel Wheels! The wind if it moves, the sky if it stops, the tone of the spear striking fills the lone castle! _Hadou 63: Thunder Roar Cannon (Raikouhou)."**

Indra's zanpakuto was quickly filled up with intense yellow lightning and it spread through the golden ropes that stretched out from the zanpakuto. The Gillians were quickly blasted apart by highly concentrated lightning. By this time Captain Soi Fon finished off the last of Gillians with a roundhouse kick straight to the mask under the enhanced strength of _Shunko. _

"Open the senkaimon and let the Onmitsukidō in. Let them sweep the place for that unidentified energy signature." Soi Fon commanded through the comms and then turned to Indra who had flash stepped beside her

"You and I will stay back and observe. If this unknown presence shows themselves in the open you will closely follow me and deal with this menace. Am I understood?"

"Yes, captain." Indra agreed and stood back as the Onmitsukidō began searching the entire forest for any third party.

After hours of searching, there was no clue whatsoever of a third party anywhere near the vicinity. In the end squad 12 installed some deep range sensors around the general area and put the search to a stop. After ensuring all the sensors worked all the deployed Shinigami were brought back to Seireitei. When Indra returned back to squad 10 there was no sign of Captain Hitsugaya but he could feel the small captain's spiritual pressure from squad 4. Within the short time that he was away a lot of paperwork has accumulated and the first one that Indra saw was a memo from Central 46 that has moved up the date of execution of Rukia Kuchiki.

**XXXXXX**

Kokuto walked through the mountains of hell and it was no pun. He was literally walking through the mountains inside the hell dimension. The raging red hot fires of hell didn't bother him as he was shielded by his benefactor else he would have been incinerated on spot for daring to travel to this part of the hell. As he climbed the last hill he saw the valley below him that was completely sunk in lava and at the very centre of the ocean of lava lay an altar with two gigantic skeletal statues. He used a high-speed technique to stand on the altar instantly. The metallic base was red hot but again his skin had toughened up after years of exposure and the protective energy of his benefactor certainly helped.

Kokuto paused at the centre of the altar and knelt as he felt the presence of the goddess that had relaxed him from the eternal torment and gave him a new purpose.

"My lady, I did as you asked." Kokuto said she patiently waited for a response from the goddess

"Was he strong Kokuto?" a voice spoke from below the altar and the sundial att the very centre rumbled under the suppressed power of the goddess

"Indeed my lady. He is powerful beyond what I expected. He has sealed his power very expertly but because of your blessing, I was able to sense that power. I believe that power will be able to break the bindings on this altar. Shall I start the plan?" Kokuto asked

"Not yet Kokuto. We must not be impatient. The time is not yet right but fear not, for when the time comes I shall warn you. For now, focus on building up the army that we need. Take great care, my loyal servant." The voice rumbled once more and fell silent

"As you wish, my lady. For the realm eternal!" Kokuto pledged and returned back to recruiting more Togabito's for their cause

**AN:**

**The last bit is a small peak into the plot for the distant future. That is the Hell verse plot and as you rightly guessed it is going to be very different. **

**I was planning to include the rescue of Rukia and the subsequent escape of Aizen and his gang into Hueco Mundo but the Hell verse introduction would be pushed back so I decided to push it back to next chapter. **


End file.
